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Rams vs Cowboys: A look at Aldon Smith's near five-year suspension and his impressive return for Dallas in 2020

Dallas may have had a forgettable game but they have a silver lining in the form of their linebacker Aldon Smith who came back after a five-year hiatus in an emphatic fashion

The Dallas Cowboys may have lost 17-20 in their season opener against the Rams on Sunday, but they have a silver lining in the form of their linebacker Aldon Smith, who, after nearly five years of hiatus came back in an emphatic fashion. He took down Rams QB Jared Goff in the fourth quarter registering his career sacks to 48.5.

His last sack was in 2015 when he played for Oakland. Smith rocketed to fame and was an All-Pro in 2012. 66 total tackles, 19.5 sacks, 18 tackles and 29 quarterback hits are staggering numbers. However, his off-field issues meant losing precious years of sporting action. But now, he's keen to make up for it after signing a one-year deal with the Cowboys for a $2M base salary along with an additional $2M in possible incentives based on sack count, according to USA Today.

Smith's legal issues went dates back to 2012 when he was arrested in Florida for suspect driving under influence. In 2013, he was arrested again for the same charge after ramming his truck into a tree in California. The same year, he turned himself in on three counts of felony for possessing illegal assault weapons. The following year, he was put behind bars for false bomb threats at LA International airport, although no charges were filed. 

2014 also saw him earn a nine-game suspension by the NFL for violating the league's personal-conduct and substance-abuse policy. In 2015, he was arrested for DUI for the third time along with vandalism chargers. This saw his journey with the San Francisco 49ers come to an end, and while there were more suspensions incoming, he was signed by the Oakland Raiders the same year with seven starts in nine games. 2017 saw him being mentioned in a domestic violence-related investigation.

In 2018, Smith was sought by the San Francisco Police Department for an alleged domestic-violence incident. This ended his time with the Raiders. The case saw him being sentenced to 90 days in jail and three years of probation and the linebacker was allowed to serve his sentence at an inpatient alcohol and drug treatment center, according to ESPN.

After all this, Smith was now back on the field and he made it count. Twitter too had rave reviews for the linebacker. "People forget Aldon Smith was putting up all-time great numbers in his prime / before his off the field issues," read one of the tweets.

For most fans, he was the lone bright spot in a game that went disastrously for the Cowboys. "How overhyped we got over this team, defense looks worst that last year, offense has too many weapons to suck this much, bad OPI on Gallup, AMARI looks like he is at 30% something very wrong with him, Aldon Smith was the only one that showed up."

"I am not even going to bring his embarrassing sack totals up, but how in the world does a man who hasn’t played football for 5 years (Aldon Smith) look like a better and more disruptive player than the 100 million D END? Oh, and Dak is worth 35, not 40," a fan commented.

Pro Football Talk summed it up quite neatly in their tweet: "Aldon Smith is looking great tonight. So much for the narrative that guys who are out of football for multiple years can't make a difference, and yes that's precisely who I am referring to."

And for some, as long as there was Smith, there was hope. "Aldon Smith was a major silver lining. Dude was an animal tonight. Defense only gave up 20 to the Rams without Jones, losing LVE, and many new faces in the secondary/DL. #Optimistic."

Ahead of first practice with the team, Smith said it was all about "staying in the moment". He also said it was about living each day. "I don't want to ever get ahead of myself. I'm grateful for every day and with that gratitude how I want to give it back is by giving and putting everything into every day and focusing 100 percent so when that day's over I don't look back with any regret."

The Cowboys will face the Atlanta Falcons next on Sunday, September 20.