Jimmy Smith (wide receiver)

Jimmy Lee Smith (born February 9, 1969) is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys and Jacksonville Jaguars.

High school years

Smith attended Callaway High School in Jackson, Mississippi and won All-Conference honors in football.

Professional career

Smith was drafted in the second round of the 1992 NFL Draft out of Jackson State University. He spent two injury-plagued seasons with Dallas. After missing much of the 1992 season with a broken leg, early in 1993 he underwent an emergency appendectomy which led to a severe infection and was nearly fatal. In the aftermath, a dispute broke out between Smith and Cowboy owner Jerry Jones, who claimed that, since the condition wasn't football related, the Cowboys should not have to pay Smith for the 1993 season. Smith spent all of 1993 on the injured reserve list.

Before the 1994 season, Smith was cut by the Cowboys. He was subsequently signed by the Philadelphia Eagles but was cut before the 1994 season began.

He was signed by the expansion Jacksonville Jaguars in February 1995 after head coach Tom Coughlin saw the talent that Smith possessed, perhaps as a result of the efforts of Smith's mother, who sent Coughlin a binder of Smith's press clippings.^[1] In 1996, Smith emerged as a dominant receiver on a Jaguars team that made an improbable appearance in the AFC Championship Game. He continued to be a key member of the Jaguars offense and helped lead the team to playoff appearances for four straight years (from 1996 to 1999). In 2001, Smith was found to have benzoylecgonine, a by-product of cocaine, in his system after being pulled over on suspicion of drunk driving. He denied using cocaine and was not charged with any crime since he was not found to be impaired while driving.^[2] The incident did place Smith into the NFL's substance-abuse program and in 2003, he was handed a four-game suspension for an undisclosed additional violation.^[3]

On May 11, 2006, Smith announced his retirement from the NFL.^[4] He finished his career seventh in NFL history with 862 catches and 11th in league history with 12,287 yards. He had 67 career touchdown catches with the Jaguars. Smith had been voted to the Pro Bowl five straight times from 1997 to 2001. He is also the Jacksonville Jaguars all-time leading receiver, having led the team in receiving every season from 1996-2005. He also set team records with 116 receptions and 1,636 yards in 1999, both career highs. His career high in touchdowns was eight, achieved in 1998, 2000 and 2001.

As of 2010, the only players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame with more career receiving yards than Smith are Jerry Rice (22,895), Art Monk (12,721) Steve Largent (13,089) and James Lofton (14,004); only Monk and Rice have more catches.

In April 2009 Smith was arrested for multiple drug charges.^[5] Since then, he has been through rehab and made an effort to make a difference in other peoples' lives through the Jimmy Smith Foundation.^[6]

NFL Records

• Most games with at least 5 receptions in a season - 16 (every game in 2001)
• Most consecutive games with at least 5 receptions - 21
• Most games with at least 49 receiving yards in a season - 16 (every game in 2001)

References

External links

• Jimmy Smith Foundation and Athletics Website
• Career Stats on NFL.com
• Career Stats on Jaguars.com
• Career Stats on PFR
• Career Stats on Database Football
• J.S. on the 2000 playoffs
• Quotes about Jimmy Smith
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