Steve Smith (running back)
American football player (1964–2021)
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Steven Anthony Smith (August 30, 1964 – November 20, 2021) was an American professional football player who was a fullback for nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Los Angeles Raiders and Seattle Seahawks. He was a team captain on the Penn State Nittany Lions's national championship team in 1986.
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | Bench press |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 0+7⁄8 in (1.85 m) | 244 lb (111 kg) | 31 in (0.79 m) | 10+3⁄4 in (0.27 m) | 12 reps |
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Richardson, Texas, U.S.
| No. 35 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Fullback | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | August 30, 1964 Washington, D.C., U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | November 20, 2021 (aged 57) Richardson, Texas, U.S. | ||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||
| Listed weight | 242 lb (110 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | DeMatha Catholic (Hyattsville, Maryland) | ||||||||
| College | Penn State | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1987 (3rd round, 81st overall pick) | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Smith was a third-round draft choice of the Raiders in the 1987 NFL draft.[1] Converted to fullback, Smith blocked for Raiders star running backs Bo Jackson and Marcus Allen. He then spent two seasons with Seattle until a back injury ended his career.[2] Although primarily a blocker, he finished his career with 1627 rushing yards and 13 receiving touchdowns.
In 1995, Smith won the inaugural Madden Bowl, a tournament during Super Bowl weekend in which current and former NFL players compete at the Madden NFL video game.
NFL career statistics
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
Regular season
| Year | Team | Games | Rushing | Receiving | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 1987 | RAI | 7 | 3 | 5 | 18 | 3.6 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 46 | 15.3 | 32 | 0 |
| 1988 | RAI | 16 | 6 | 38 | 162 | 4.3 | 21 | 3 | 26 | 299 | 11.5 | 45 | 6 |
| 1989 | RAI | 16 | 16 | 117 | 471 | 4.0 | 21 | 1 | 19 | 140 | 7.4 | 14 | 0 |
| 1990 | RAI | 16 | 15 | 81 | 327 | 4.0 | 17 | 2 | 4 | 30 | 7.5 | 17 | 3 |
| 1991 | RAI | 16 | 16 | 62 | 265 | 4.3 | 19 | 1 | 15 | 130 | 8.7 | 37 | 1 |
| 1992 | RAI | 16 | 15 | 44 | 129 | 2.9 | 15 | 0 | 28 | 217 | 7.8 | 19 | 1 |
| 1993 | RAI | 16 | 13 | 47 | 156 | 3.3 | 13 | 0 | 18 | 187 | 10.4 | 22 | 0 |
| 1994 | SEA | 16 | 0 | 26 | 80 | 3.1 | 12 | 2 | 11 | 142 | 12.9 | 25 | 1 |
| 1995 | SEA | 9 | 7 | 9 | 19 | 2.1 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 59 | 8.4 | 17 | 1 |
| 128 | 91 | 429 | 1,627 | 3.8 | 21 | 9 | 131 | 1,250 | 9.5 | 45 | 13 | ||
Playoffs
After football
Smith married former Raiderette Chie Smith from Los Angeles, CA in December 1989.[3] The couple had two children, Dante and Jazmin and lived in Richardson, Texas.[2] Smith had been afflicted with Lou Gehrig's disease from July 2002 until his death. He could not speak because of a ventilator and received his food through a feeding tube. He communicated via a state of the art computer system paid for by The Steve Gleason Foundation.
Smith was the focus of an August 17, 2010, episode of HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel exploring how toxic proteins that form after brain trauma may cause Lou Gehrig's disease.[4] He died on November 20, 2021, after suffering from ALS for almost 20 years.[5]
