Dove Valley is neither car dealership nor franchise sit-down eatery, so there are no “Employee of the Month” plaques adorning the walls of Broncos headquarters.
If there were, Rod Smith’s name might be the only one on them for the last 14 years.
It’s not that others haven’t worked diligently to ensure Broncos success. It’s not that others haven’t at times provided just a little more on the playing field than the Broncos’ beloved No. 80.
But Smith came to set the example. His perfect attendance for offseason workouts was the stuff of legend. It might take a few years for Smith to become Ring of Fame-eligible, but his name and jersey number might find a home in the team’s strength and conditioning center, thanks to a baker’s dozen years of 100 percent attendance that would often leave rookies and newcomers a tad awestruck.
“Even when he was on the practice squad, you could see the desire and the determination that he had to be good — to be great,” tight end Shannon Sharpe said in 2003. “And he worked every day. There was no job that he wouldn’t do. They put him at wide receiver, he’d take all the reps on scout team and he was always the opposing team’s best receiver, and he got better, and he worked at it.”
What elicited Sharpe’s comment was one of the most memorable moments of Smith’s career, a November 2003 game against the San Diego Chargers when he returned a punt 65 yards for a touchdown in a 37-8 romp.
Such work was hardly Smith’s forté. Prior to that season, Smith hadn’t returned a punt in six years, even though he’d done it so well early in his career that he was the league’s all-time leader in punt-return average for a spell.
But that day somehow encapsulated his career. He contributed in a manner that was not only unexpected, but unusual; one doesn’t see many receivers with 600 catches jogging onto the field to catch a punt, to stand like a buoy amidst a choppy sea of opposing helmets.
That day, he hit the 600-reception milestone and returned the punt for a score.
“I’ve tried to be consistent throughout my career of what I give them every day,” Smith said in the locker room late that afternoon. “And it hasn’t changed since Day One, when I came into the Broncos facility to sign my contract as a free agent.”
And it wouldn’t change last year, in spite of circumstances that would have conspired to force the contrary.
Even after a hip injury left him watching from the sidelines, Smith’s commitment to the organization never wavered. For every game, he was there — as coach, counselor and teammate. For every practice, he was there, guiding Brandon Marshall, Brandon Stokley and the other receivers who pick up his torch.
But being consigned to the sideline was an emotional pain so great it might have exceeded the physical pain with which he dealt first in playing through the hip injury for three seasons, then in his lengthy rehabilitation.
He might have been able to handle it if the Broncos had won last year. But with it being the first losing season this century, Smith chafed and ached, unable to do much to reverse the spin and get the Broncos sailing to the playoffs once again.
“If we were going to get our butt kicked I wanted to get mine kicked too,” he said on Dec. 28. “It feels like you’re on the side watching everybody take blows, and that’s hard for me. That’s the worst part of the whole deal. If we’re going down I wanted to go down with them, I wanted to be dirty like everybody else. But I’m taking my lumps on the sideline.”
For more of what he said that day, click on the video below:
But he was nevertheless there. Success begins with showing up — even when you don’t necessarily have to. Smith could have done his rehabilitation work and gone home; instead he donned a coaches’ parka and joined his teammates and coaches on the field during the week and on the sidelines during games.
It hurt him to be out of uniform. It would have hurt him even more not to try to somehow help the team, even when his balky hip kept him from doing so in the manner to which he and the Broncos had been accustomed from that warm early autumn afternoon against the Washington Redskins 12 years earlier, when he caught the last-second touchdown pass that launched a brilliant career.
If children ask me about a player they should emulate, I always cite Smith.
He isn’t perfect, and he knows it. He doesn’t shirk from areas in which he struggled; he attacks them as though they were opposing defenders, works through them and emerges at the other side a more complete and honorable player — and, more importantly, a man. He’s intelligent, educated and well-read. He understands and embraces the world outside his sport, even as he trained his focus to be laser-sharp within it.
I’ve never seen any player command respect in the locker room the way Smith did. And every last smidgen of it is richly deserved.
Tags: Rod Smith, Wide receivers
“Going the Distance” by Bill Conti.
Rod, you are all class. Your contribution for all 14 yrs has exceeded the best in NFL history. Your spirit, attitude and example of professionalism for all the Broncos players has been your greatest contribution.
Thank You and God bless you.
rod, u should come back and mentor marshall so he can b like u were in your prime. he should be offered some sort of job so he can still help out
offseason wish list
Corey williams
rashard mendenhall
shawn rodgers
chris williams
I dont even know what to say its hard to choke down the fact that we will never see Rod Smith play for the broncos. I personally have never seen the kind of heart you put twords your play in any other player. I hope you stay to help the team out. the NFL needs more players like number 80
hey hey hey….rod is the man…lets pick up Corey Williams…pass rush DT from the pack or Rod coleman…he is a G….anyways..Rod the man, FUture HOF…we need to get zach thomas….he would shore up are run defense all by him self!! but he is old…but maybe he could bring his bro in law Jason Taylor here to groom jarvis and tim!!
I did not want to talk about anybody other than #80 on here, but why is everybody so intent on chasing old free agents with histories of injury? We saw this past season how badly chasing that “quick fix” can turn out. Look how New England, Indy, Green Bay, the Giants…even the Cowboys to a large extent…have gained success. Primarily through the draft. I for one hope we can refrain from chasing after “names”, because it clearly did not turn out too well last year. I like Zach Thomas, but if we are going to go after an old LB with injury problems, why would we go after him rather than Al Wilson?
I’m really hoping the team is trying to trade down. Surely someone (Dallas?) wants to trade up in the draft! Crable is looking like a good option in the first round if we can trade down far enough. Hell, trade back a couple of times and stock this team with draft picks. We need LOTS of help, not just a patch here and there. Thomas has had his day, keep D.J. in the middle. My GOD, how many tackles does one man have to make to get some credit (just ask Randy Gradishar)?
The only problem with DJ’s takles is that they are all 8- 10 yards down the field. He looked lost back there. We need a more instictive linebacker to play the middle. I wish we would play people in the natural positons. Sapp at fullback and Foxworth at saftey just don’t cut it. Let Bailey return kicks next year.
The only free agent I want is Faneca.
Let me get this straight, you want Bailey to return kicks and D.J. didn’t play well last year? Get off the METH dude, seriously. D.J. wasn’t the one making tackles down the field, that would be Foxworth and Hamza. If the DT’s had of contained their lanes D.J. would have had more of an impact. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE DT’S THAT STAY IN THEIR LANES IT DOESN’T MATTER WHO YOU HAVE AT LB!!!
tell em’ hrdnokd, it wouldnt of mattered if we had butkis grandishar and T.sizzle back there(no knock on DJ the guy is stud what like 150+ last year) without good defensive tackles up front to keep the guards and centers from chippin on mthe backers it dont matter who is back there..what do you think of big Marcus Thomas hrdnokd? i think his future is bright and that we need to get him some more help at DT.., just what i think…
peace out
If al could play at all he would be, he would have been on the giants superbowl team if he could have passed a physical….anyways…the pats offered Zach Thomas a deal b4 anyone else could and they will get him probably to play JR’s spot….well we missed out already
The difference is the Pats are only a player or two away from winning. Like it or not, our beloved Broncos are in a mini-rebuilding mode. One older LB who has recent injury problems makes sense for the Pats, but not in Denver. Just look what the team has done on offense: Cutler, Marshall, Selvin, Scheffler, Nate Jackson, Kuper, Myers, etc… throw in free agents that make sense, not just whatever the biggest name out there happens to be. I’m sure Thomas will have a great year in NE, if that’s where he ends up, but it still would not make sense to sign him here, only to have to replace him in 1 - 3 years.
I meant to say the Pats are only a player or two away from winning it all. I think they won a few games last year.
The bears released Muhamad that another reason to trade javon
…also the Vikings released FS Dwight Smith, who would fill in a big hole if another of our great player retires…
Depth Chart(offense)
WR-Berian-Bmarsh-Stokes-Martinez
RT-LJ SHelton
RG-Kuper/Myers
C-Nalen
LG-Hamilton/Holland
LT-FA or Draft
RB-Young-warrick Dunn or pick FB-Pick