49ers release Aldon Smith

The 49ers just announced they’ve released Aldon Smith.

The Niners included the following statement in their press release: ““This organization has tried very hard to help Aldon fight his issues. Although he is no longer a member of this team, our support and concern for him will continue.”

The press release does not attribute that quote to anyone.

Someone from the team will have a press conference any minute. Stay tuned.

This article has 65 Comments

  1. I liked Tomsula’s Presser. He seemed sincere. I like the team’s commitment to Aldon post-employment for help, at least until he ever signs with another team.

    1. Dallas seems to be the new collector or problem children, nabbing Randy Gregory, La’el Collins and Greg Hardy on the extreme cheap.

      Wouldn’t that be lovely having to face Aldon in a Dallas uniform…

      1. A team may sign him, but he’s likely facing a season long suspension so I doubt he’s a factor for anybody this year.

  2. All the talent in the world but no brains to use Uber or to call a cab…you were given every chance in the world Aldon…thanks for your service to the Niners but in the end booze was more important than football…I’m not even mad…just sad and disappointed

  3. Premature decision. Why not wait a full 24 hours and gather all facts? Why not wait until Monday ?

    Moving on to football, this does not mark the end of season. AS missed 9 games last year and the D was pretty solid. Lynch, brooks and eli are formidable OLBs. I am not panicking just yet, but this off season has been a slow moving avalanche. Hopefully this was the last straw

  4. This is Josh Gordon disappointing. So much talent, such poor decisions. Million dollar bodies with ten cent heads. What a freaking shame.

    Pit of my stomach upset about this, truly thought he was going to go out and kill out this season. Even if it was probably going to be his last as a 49er anyway I’m still hugely disappointed.

    No pressure on Harold now.

  5. It wasn’t all Justin. Aldon badly hurt his shoulder in that 2012 Pats game, kept it quiet and had it repaired after the season.

    I truly believe if he kept his act together, another 20 sack season was in the cards with a rotation of Dial, Dockett and Caradine next to him.

    Aldon Smith is a HOF talent at one of the key positions conducive to winning. When one of the big 5 (QB, CB, LT, WR, Pass Rusher) goes down, it really hurts.

    But talent means nothing if you can’t get on the field.

  6. From Cam Inmans blog:

    Santa Clara police Lt. Kurt Clark said Thursday night, Smith crashed into a parked car at a condo complex on Moreland Way. He parked his large SUV, got out and left.

    Police responded and as they were talking to the owner of the damaged vehicle, Smith returned. Officers administered a sobriety test.

    “He did not complete it satisfactorily,” Clarke said.

    1. If this is true, it seems like he could have handled it differently so that it wouldn’t have been a problem (ASSUMING, of course, that he was not DUI). The potential was there for it just to have been a traffic accident. Or am I missing something.

        1. It sounds like leaving the car and then coming back is what Aldon meant by handling it better. Failure to complete the sobriety test leaves the important issue of drunk driving open. It doesn’t sound like there was an altercation with either the car owner or the police. It also doesn’t sound like there was an injury unless it was to Aldon.

          It sounds like the 49ers are moving on without one of the elements that would have helped them get above last season’s record.

      1. Cubus,

        What this says is that he likely was intoxicated. To what extent I don’t know, but he is under a zero Alcohol condition as part of his probation so any amount would be a problem.

        1. Rocket: You are probably right, but another scenario might be that he was texting or otherwise distracted. Of course, it’s all moot now as he is gone. This has to be the worst offseason any team has ever had!

          1. It’s possible Joe Thomas’ first off season might be close, but that was all self inflicted in the name of cleaning house.

        2. Anything is possible, but if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck…

          A question for JPN: If this report is true, then they didn’t actually catch Smith driving, but performed a field sobriety test that he failed. How does it proceed from here? Can he be convicted of a DUI under these terms?

          1. Hey Rocket – Sorry I did not see this earlier. My wife and I went on a weekend trip for her birthday.

            The short answer is yes. It is more difficult to convict someone of DUI when the evidence is circumstantial rather than direct, but not impossible.

            So, for example, let’s say Aldon admitted he was driving and that he hit the parked car. Then, let’s say he was intoxicated when he returned. Even absent other evidence, if the time frame between the incident and when he returned was too short for his BAC to reach the measured level (whatever that was), then an impairment at the time of incident can be inferred. It is all a matter of timing and control – did he have control of the vehicle at the time of the incident and can his state of inebriation be reasonably established for that time? If these are both answerable, and the answer regarding his level of inebriation indicates impairment, then a DUI conviction is possible.

            There are growing challenges to such convictions, however. A few years ago the Oklahoma Supreme Court overturned one in which the defendant was sleeping in a car parked in a private driveway and no evidence of operation existed. But, OK may be an outlier; in other states similar convictions have been upheld, especially when there was evidence that the defendant had been operating the car or had sufficient control that operation could be inferred.

            1. What, a weekend with your wife? You can’t do that, you have to be at our beck and call for any questions we may have of you. No more slacking off for you ;)

              Thanks for the explanation. I guess much will depend on what Aldon told them and his level of intoxication when he returned.

  7. Hopefully this is the rock bottom of what has absolutely been unfathomable offseason.

    1. I was just thinking that this season is kind of like a bear stock market. No one really knows where the bottom is. :(

      1. Yeah, just when you think this must be it, this team finds new and delightful ways to surprise us.

        Just wait. The offseason isn’t over yet.

  8. 49ers save 3,245,875 in cap space and take a 1.6 million dollar dead money hit. Considering a league ban of what would probably be a year this move makes sense

    1. But you still lose one of the best pass rushers in the game. Its a huge blow to a defense trying to redefine itself as one of the best. Besides the cap savings, the timing of this is terrible. Its not like they can go out and spend the money and replace that kind of talent. Its tough being a Niner fan these days.

        1. Yeah because they have so much cap room that they cant even sign their own top talented players. Talk about knowing football no class!

            1. And next year you will be in rebuild mode. But go ahead sign Aldon. If that’s what you think you need. Im thinking that huge investment in Russ is gonna be an “oh no”
              No class!

              1. We still got our core. Your team has nothing not even the original coaching staff. Too pitiful for words.

              2. We dont have a core? Joe Staley, Boone, Brooks, Reid, Brock? Do your research before popping off No class!

  9. I still think he will be a 49er when and if he gets his head straight. He’s gone for at least a year. I wouldn’t put it past this front office

      1. So am I if they find out what it takes to improve his situation.

        Charles Haley says that he was undiagnosed Bipolar for his entire career, and never was able to ask for help until after he retired. He has been trying to get Aldon to seriously ask for meaningful help.

  10. Mixed feelings about Aldon. While I feel bad that the young man has internal issues that he can’t seem to conquer, I also have a sense of anger that he has not opted to find the help he needs to save his career.

    The Org had no other choice but to release Aldon after repeated run-ins with the law along with York’ statement last December about winning with class.
    Maybe Aldon can revive his career with another team after he gets past this episode but he won’t have much financial leverage when negotiating and will have to prove himself again.

    I agree with Tomsula about it being a sad day. Hope Aldon can get his life together and find some self control and maturity soon.

  11. Worst offseason of any team in recent memory
    Maybe this is karma paying back Jed York for his sleazy handling of the Harbaugh situation

    1. Yep karma is a Biotch. Just like that goal line interception in the SB, when everyone and their cousin would have handed the ball to Lynch. Turned out well.

      1. Do you know how difficult it is to even return to a super bowl a second time? Probably not? Doubt you know dick about football. All you have is memoried from b/4 you were born. And we are going to knock the crap out of you again (twice) like we last year — are you ready for that?

        1. Hmmm, is this everyones favorite troll? Hope you had a good off season. Bet you were never thinking about that goal line play for a nanosecond.
          BTW, I was there for those back to back SBs, and came close to a threepeat, if not for a helmet to the football in NFCCG by RC. So I know about Back to back success. Unlike you, who had her hopes crushed by the Most imbecilic play call in the history of the game. Lynch would have fallen forward for that 1 yard, if not beast moding into the end zone. Ah, sweet memories.

    1. Knock the crap out of the Niners? Like I said, Karma is a Biotch. You will not be facing a Niner squad with unforced errors that helped you win. Your team will be bludgeoned by a team that is biting nails for a little payback. Lets see how well those shoulders and arms hold up to the pounding. Graham disappears in big games, and he never frightened the Niners. I see your team is so desperate, they draft woman beaters.

      1. As a Seahawk fan, and I’m only speaking for myself, I never never underestimate my foes. After coming back from 3-3 last year, I remember saying on this site “if we win the division that would be my SB.” And we did. Unfortunately, we didn’t bring it home. But a loss is a loss no matter how it happens.

        However realistically, looking at the 49ers this year, the best your team was going to do was with a brand new coaching staff, loss of key players, turmoil, was 7-9. Now with AS gone, you do the math. Your best revenge is proving me wrong . Put another way, if you break even, it would be a miracle!

        1. No one stays on top forever. Seahawks have lost a lot of players due to their success, and 7 players dominate a big chunk of their salary cap. They lost Quinn and Norton and their contribution last year should not be slighted. The Niners, Rams and Cards have all gotten better, and they have the 4th hardest schedule.
          Please do not be despondent when they fail to even get to the playoffs.
          The biggest miracle is your insouciance over losing the SB. I guess you did not care that they almost repeated even though you brought up that point in a previous post. I know Seahawk fans who were walking around with a bludgeoned look on their face a whole week after that incredible heart wrenching loss.

      2. Well, no reason you should know this but Jimmy is learning how to “block.” It’s the Seahaw way and they are expecting it. And he seems to welcome the challenge. He was a rebounder when he played basketball so he’s tough.

        1. We’ve contained him every time we played him. It will be no diffetent.
          BTW No class, I thought you were just passing by?

        2. Sounds like you are blocking out the fact that the Seahawks sucked for so long, this brief window of success is going to your head. Maybe you should wait til your team has won at least10 games a year for 16 years before you start braying.

    1. I Am enjoying myself. You know me, I like engaging the trolls. It is kinda cathartic to rip this bimbo’s arguments to shreds, and other posters do not seem to mind.
      So far, she has resorted to hurling insults so I know I have gotten to her. Its like shooting fish in a barrel.
      Threaten to ignore me? She is not bright enough to have learned her lesson. I expect her back just to take more punishment because her life sucks so bad she has to troll for attention, and I am more than happy to oblige her because I get to bring up the most imbecilic play call in the history of the Super Bowl again and again.

      1. I’m not sure you know what other people think about engaging trolls. How many others are into it with you?

        1. No, they are leaving me alone. Unlike you.
          I am not seeing any regular poster tell me to tone it down. I just wanted to help Mr Prime. And so far, I have been gentle. You may not know it, but I can become pretty mean. Oh wait, you have garnered some of my ire.
          Still, I consider you a worthy opponent, so that is a sign of respect, and I like your sense of humor. Also, you do not want the Niners to fail like some other posters do, so I am not resentful about your posts.

          1. Well yes. All that’s true and mutual.

            On the other hand, The most common advise it to deny a troll any kind of acknowledgement. It drives them crazy.

            This is just a thought that I can’t verify. Notice where “Mary’s” return took place. This thread wad slightly out of date before “Mary” posted. She got a rise from you for a while and then, poof and “Mary” was gone again. That’s typical of a troll who has been banned. I’m assuming, for the moment that “Mary” has been banned again on a second ISP.

Comments are closed.