New details have emerged regarding the death of former star linebacker Aldon Smith.
Smith was found unresponsive in the passenger seat of a friend’s truck. The friend, Amir Shirazi, told Matthias Gafni and Noah Furtado of the San Francisco Chronicle that he initially believed Smith had fallen asleep until the former pass rusher started twitching.
Smith had been helping to deliver pizzas to a local homeless shelter earlier in the day Saturday. Scott Wagers, the co-founder of the charity, said Smith looked “lethargic.” After that delivery, Shirazi drove the two of them home, ran into the house to turn some lights on, and returned to find Smith unresponsive.
Smith was rushed to Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose, where he was pronounced dead. No cause of death has officially been given, but Shirazi speculated that it might have been caused by a heart attack.
The 36-year-old former NFL standout died suddenly on Saturday. A top-10 pick in the 2011 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers, Smith was an All-Pro in his second NFL season, and had a whopping 33.5 sacks through his first two campaigns. His career was ultimately derailed by substance abuse, and he received several NFL suspensions for repeated violations of league policy.
