 Smith, c. 1997–1999 | |||||||||||
| No. 90, 91 | |||||||||||
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| Position | Defensive end | ||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||
| Born | (1966-04-10)April 10, 1966 (age 59) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | ||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||||
| Weight | 270 lb (122 kg) | ||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||
| High school | McDonogh 35 (New Orleans) | ||||||||||
| College | Nebraska | ||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1988: 1st round,2nd overall pick | ||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||
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Neil Smith (born April 10, 1966) is an American former professionalfootball player who was adefensive end in theNational Football League (NFL). He played for theKansas City Chiefs from 1988 to 1996, theDenver Broncos from 1997 to 1999, and theSan Diego Chargers in 2000. Before his NFL career, he playedcollege football for theNebraska Cornhuskers, where he was anAll-American in1987. He also co-owned anarena football team, theKansas City Command.
Born inNew Orleans, Smith graduated fromMcDonogh No. 35 Senior High School in the city.[1]
The Chiefs, who had the third pick, made it known to everyone before the1988 NFL draft that they intended to take Smith. TheDetroit Lions, picking second, threatened to pick Smith and the Chiefs were forced to move up one slot to make sure that Smith would be their pick.[citation needed] Incidentally, one of the draft picks the Chiefs surrendered in order to move up turned out to be star linebackerChris Spielman. Smith's pre-draft measurables were head-turning. He was 6' 4¼", weighed 257 pounds,[2] had a 7-foot-1½-inch arm span,[3] and ran a 4.55 forty-yard dash.[4]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Won theSuper Bowl | |
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | Int | Yds | TD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | |||
| 1988 | KC | 13 | 53 | — | — | 2.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1989 | KC | 15 | 67 | — | — | 6.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| 1990 | KC | 16 | 68 | — | — | 9.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1991 | KC | 16 | 65 | — | — | 8.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 0 |
| 1992 | KC | 16 | 77 | — | — | 14.5 | 1 | 22 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1993 | KC | 16 | 55 | — | — | 15.0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1994 | KC | 14 | 46 | 42 | 4 | 11.5 | 1 | 41 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| 1995 | KC | 16 | 55 | 42 | 13 | 12.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | KC | 16 | 41 | 34 | 7 | 6.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1997 | DEN | 14 | 34 | 29 | 5 | 8.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1998 | DEN | 14 | 27 | 20 | 7 | 4.0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1999 | DEN | 15 | 31 | 25 | 6 | 6.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2000 | SD | 10 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 191 | 625 | 197 | 43 | 104.5 | 4 | 68 | 1 | 30 | 12 | 19 | 1 | |
One of the topdefensive linemen of his era, Smith made thePro Bowl 6 times during his career (1991–1995 and 1997), and led the NFL with 15sacks in the 1993 season. With the Broncos, Smith won 2NFL championship rings forSuper Bowl XXXII andSuper Bowl XXXIII. In the1998 Divisional Playoffs against theMiami Dolphins, Smith cemented the 38-3 Broncos victory with a 79-yardfumble return for atouchdown, and in Super Bowl XXXII, he recorded a key fumble recovery that set up a Broncosfield goal.
Smith finished his 13 NFL seasons with 104.5 sacks, 30 forced fumbles, 12 fumble recoveries, 19 return yards, and 1 touchdown. He also intercepted 4 passes, returning them for 68 yards and a touchdown. He is the former co-owner of theKansas City Brigade, a team in theArena Football League from 2006 until 2008.
On October 22, 2006, Smith was inducted to theChiefs's Hall of Fame.
Smith's trademark sack celebration, which consisted of him pantomiming swinging a baseball bat, was invented in tribute to another Kansas City sports hero,Hall Of FamerGeorge Brett.[5]
There was a rule created in his name. The "Neil Smith" rule, enacted in 1998, prevents a defensive lineman from flinching to induce a false start penalty on the offense.
Smith appeared as a panelist on theNickelodeon game showFigure it Out. He also appeared in a series of Campbell's Chunky Soup commercials.
TheKansas City Command retired #90 in his honor.
| International | |
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| National | |
