The Aldon Smith thread - RIP

Originally posted by captveg:

Originally posted by Rockchalk_Seahawk:
I know but let's face it the Niners don't exactly have a history of the most player friendly front office.

They actually have the reputation as one of the most player friendly front offices in league history. Sure, they're tough on negotiations when it comes to contracts, but their reputation for providing players with support during and after their careers is excellent. They arguably have the best alumni program in the NFL.

Just last week, Smith was talking to the 2026 rookies at 49ers HQ. He's still welcomed by the Org to stop by anytime

Did not expect to be as upset or affected by this as I have been. Such a young bright light and literally HOF talent...saw someone post a sentiment that illustrates just how wild, yet completely plausible, this alternate path could be. They mentioned how, at 36, he should be entering or completing his final NFL season and ready for a first ballot selection to Canton.

Instead, we're mouring a young guy who, despite the Raiders and late comeback with Dallas, really hasn't been truly relevant or involved in the NFL since 2013.

Will always have the utmost respect for an all time great niner and one of the best pass rushing talents the NFL has ever seen. RIP Aldon.

Originally posted by Afrikan:

Originally posted by genus49:

Originally posted by SanDiego49er:
That's very tragic and sad. Not unexpected though. He was so troubled. What could have been if he didn't have addiction and had his head on straight?

By most accounts he was in a much better space. Even talked to rookies recently.

Though someone posted a recent interview which sounds very sad in hindsight. Still don't know what happened but hard to imagine it wasn't self inflicted.

I hate going there but I always wonder what happens if Kaepernick doesn't steal his gf. Maybe it wasn't any big deal or maybe it was enough of a push to derail his career and I imagine that wasn't great for mental health basically knowing what could've been. Just very sad.

the interview I was talking about

Last week, Aldon Smith was on Laced Up talking about his life and career. You could tell right away he was struggling. Mental health matters.https://t.co/sI58KjhVeW

— ???????????????????? 🍀 (@TylerTalksBall) June 13, 2026

Am I going to get a ban for calling out your BS, since you're a mod now?

You're not the genius you think you are, if you would have done the research about how all that went down, you wouldn't say that stupid s**t. I've corrected many folks on here about that for years now, YET yall just don't want to accept the truth...and just prefer to have reasons to bash a past player.

It's f**king pathetic that our fanbase still does this s**t... yall are some horrible f**king people... like legit bad people. This isn't the first time on this forum.

She left Aldon (we probably know the reason)... and dated someone else.... a year plus went by she, broke up with that other person...and THEN she got close to Kap.

Kap was mature and knew what he wanted, he was ready. Aldon, when dating her, was not at that place....and he wasn't at the place for a long time. At the expense of her mental health, should she have stayed with Aldon? For his career's sake, for the 9ers and fans sake? Of course not. What ever it was that she had with Kap years later, it worked out. They are still together...have a child.

For folks to use Aldon's death as an excuse to ONCE AGAIN take a swipe at Kaepernick is just pathetic... BUT NOT SURPRISING!

As a mod you should set an example of how you want you members to behave.... but no that has never been the case around here with some mods.. Kolohe, Phoenix. They are not mods anymore. That might be a hint for you genius, but you're too prideful.

I had a close friend who went the same path as Aldon, but got killed being in a bad situation. It didn't matter fun he was as a person... it didn't matter how nice he treated people around him...it didn't matter how unique he was as a person, interested in different hobbies...reading... (like I'm sure Aldon was behind the addiction).... it doesn't matter... once someone gets caught up in that, even with good people/support around them... sometimes it is not enough.

Many of us knew in the back of our minds Aldon was heading in this direction.... we've seen it before. And worse, I had a co-worker who was a great person... bad situation happened with his other job..and then he broke up with his girlfriend (yet she still stayed in his apartment)... that f**ked with him and he got to drinking. Years pass and he had stomach problems and lost his secure City and County job.... but what happens? Some time passes and he finds someone new. He falls in love...he's happy... he has a baby. What a turn around. This is all he wanted.... but all those years of drinking f**ked up his body and he died before his kid turned one. It's been some time since he passed but we still have a picture of him, with his wife and kid, in our main work area...

What ever someone might be going through (relationship, school, work, friends)... it is a moment... it can be a week, a month, or year... but there is a good chance it will get better. What you don't want to do is mess up your health when you are down...you think about your future and how it will somehow get better. Because when it does get better, you want to make sure you can enjoy it. 😕

R.I.P. Aldon..

Weirdest post I've ever seen on here. And I've been on here since 06 or 07.

Addiction is absolutely brutal, heartless, and relentless. Sucks. RIP. 😥

Originally posted by NinerPrideinNJ:
Weirdest post I've ever seen on here. And I've been on here since 06 or 07.

Then you shouldn't be surpised who wrote it. What was your old user name back then?

NinerPrideinNJ, since you went back a few pages to find that post, I'm also sure you came across the Mod's (Gengus) request to move on from the subject... BUT YOU NinerPride, chose to still bring it back a few pages after...

You should delete/edit your post.

Family says they will have Smith's brain researched for CTE.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/49081473/family-aldon-smith-having-brain-checked-cte

RIP Brother. Gone way too early. Tragic.

Originally posted by VaBeachNiner:
Family says they will have Smith's brain researched for CTE.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/49081473/family-aldon-smith-having-brain-checked-cte

Has there been a former NFL player whose brain was studied and not found to have CTE? It sure seems like if you've played football, you have some degree of CTE.

Not to diminish the effects of CTE because it could very well have formed early on, but Aldon had character concerns going back to college.

Can't think of a sadder story than this. His first two year were absolutely unreal. May he rest in peace.

Originally posted by Rockchalk_Seahawk:
I know but let's face it the Niners don't exactly have a history of the most player friendly front office. We try to stay on top of our players at all times which is why we rarely get players that get arrested in Seattle

What are you basing this on?

Player-friendly front office? Didn't virtually every key member of your only other group who had sustained success in your franchise's 50 years leave under bad circumstances?
Didn't they all go extended periods of time where they had no relationship with the organization?

Originally posted by LayTheWoodall:

Originally posted by Rockchalk_Seahawk:
I know but let's face it the Niners don't exactly have a history of the most player friendly front office. We try to stay on top of our players at all times which is why we rarely get players that get arrested in Seattle

What are you basing this on?

Player-friendly front office? Didn't virtually every key member of your only other group who had sustained success in your franchise's 50 years leave under bad circumstances?
Didn't they all go extended periods of time where they had no relationship with the organization?

For me, I'd just ignore the troll.

Originally posted by Rathof44:
Addiction is absolutely brutal, heartless, and relentless. Sucks. RIP. 😥

Agree 💯 %, and I suspect a healthy dose of CTE on top of that too, unfortunately.

Originally posted by LayTheWoodall:

Originally posted by Rockchalk_Seahawk:
I know but let's face it the Niners don't exactly have a history of the most player friendly front office. We try to stay on top of our players at all times which is why we rarely get players that get arrested in Seattle

What are you basing this on?

Player-friendly front office? Didn't virtually every key member of your only other group who had sustained success in your franchise's 50 years leave under bad circumstances?
Didn't they all go extended periods of time where they had no relationship with the organization?

No. We traded Russ because after the crooked finger he was useless. Schneider fleeced Denver with Russ and that trade, in and of itself, was a huge reason we won the Super Bowl last year. We usually cut bait early on if the player is making poor decisions

He was an unbelievable player in the short time we had him here with us.

Such a tragic, and devastating loss at such a young age

R.I.P Brother.