The San Francisco 49ers have a big decision to make soon regarding prolific outside linebacker Aldon Smith: They have to decide by May 3 whether to pick up his fifth-year option. Just by looking at the stats, the decision ought to be a no-brainer. Smith has 42 sacks, five forced fumbles and 137 combined tackles across three seasons since being taken No. 7 overall in 2011.
49ers face tough decision on troubled Aldon Smith and 5th-year option
The San Francisco 49ers have had a tough offseason thus far, and Aldon Smith isn’t making it any easier.
Jeff Gross
But the decision isn't nearly so cut-and-dry due to Smith's multiple off-field issues. He has a court hearing on April 29 concerning DUI and gun possession charges from last year, and was recently involved in an incident at LAX International Airport, prior to which he may have been consuming alcohol.
More from our team site
More from our team site
A player consuming alcohol isn’t a crime, and what actually went down at LAX is still unclear, but Smith had to be placed in rehab last year. He has been described as having a drinking problem -- an addiction. Last season, he was found passed out in the front seat of a vehicle that was up against a tree and running.
Smith missed a good chunk of the regular season due to his stint in rehab last year, but once he got out, he returned to the field. As the Bay Area Sports Guy notes, Smith seemed to have taken control of his life (another solid read from that site includes a look at addiction and the road to recovery here). It was an encouraging sign, after the 49ers faced criticism for letting Smith play between his arrest and the start of his rehab stint. Now, the outside linebacker is back in the news.
This offseason, the 49ers have also dealt with the arrests of Daniel Kilgore (though he had the charges dropped) and Chris Culliver, and both Colin Kaepernick and Quinton Patton were the subjects of an investigation that we still don't know much about. Combine those incidents with talk about an unhealthy coach-general manager relationship, and one can understand why the last few months have been rough on the organization's PR team.
There are two important things to consider going forward with Smith:
What do the 49ers do with Smith’s fifth-year option?
That’s a popular topic for debate. On one hand, you have national media such as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reporting that the 49ers are “unlikely” to have “enough answers on Smith” by the deadline. Rapoport added that it’s hard to see the 49ers picking up the option, a sentiment echoed by Mike Garofolo of FOX Sports.
Rapoport added that the 49ers will “wait until the last minute” to make a call on Smith. Again, Smith’s court date for his DUI and gun charge is April 29 and the deadline for the decision on his fifth-year option is May 3. In this instance, Rapoport’s report is probably accurate. The 49ers will want to see how the LAX situation plays out, as well as the result of Smith’s court appearance.
Tim Kawkami of the Mercury News also thinks the 49ers won’t be interested in picking up the option, because Smith’s 2015 numbers would be fully guaranteed against injury.
The option is the standard fifth-year option given to first-round rookies under the new collective bargaining agreement. It is worth $9.754 million and would allow the 49ers a chance to work out a contract extension with Smith. If they use the option, however, it would immediately become guaranteed against injury. If the 49ers don’t pick up the option, Smith becomes a free agent in 2015.
David Fucillo of Niners Nation disagrees with Kawkami and the national reporters, saying that the 49ers could pick up the option on Smith as a business decision, if not as a show of support. According to Fucillo, the 49ers wouldn’t decline the option just to “make a statement.” Unlike Rapoport, he rejects the assertion that the 49ers “don’t want to play a semantics game.”
If the 49ers pick up the option, it provides them with numerous scenarios. If this TSA thing proves to have been overblown and Smith avoids trouble this year, the 49ers have him for 2015, and can work on a potential contract extension. If this TSA thing is not overblown, and Smith continues to have problems, the 49ers can still elect to release or trade him without cap implications for 2015.
Fucillo also noted that the 49ers could sign Smith to a smaller deal if he plays well in 2014, in which case the team would not be bound by the option -- they could simply tear it up.
What do the 49ers do for the 2014-15 season?
Again, the answer will not be clear until after Smith’s April 29 court date. If he faces legal penalties related to the LAX incident, it’s likely that the league will hand down its own punishment.
If Smith is not sentenced to jail time and is physically able to play, then the next step will be to determine whether alcohol was involved at LAX. If it was, then another stint in rehab may be required, whether mandated by the team or the league office.
Aldon Smith
Aldon Smith
Then, San Francisco’s hand may have already been forced by the rough offseason. The 49ers have been dealing with an overload of bad press, and playing Smith may invite more. Kawakami adds that Smith “hasn’t only lost the benefit of the doubt, [but] he probably won’t play for them in ‘14.”
That doesn’t mean that the 49ers will release Smith, of course, but according to Kawakami the management “is embarrassed,“ and that there is a “weariness and frustration over Smith’s behavior” that he hasn’t heard regarding anyone else on the team.
Keep in mind that reporters are citing anonymous sources, and the 49ers have made no public statements. Also note that the team came out and supported Smith after his DUI arrest last year -- they made official statements, sent him to rehab and gave him a chance to rejoin the team. They have been somewhat quieter lately.
Whether the 49ers and Smith are at the end of their road together is unknown. The Niners almost certainly won’t release Smith in 2014 -- they are on the hook for $3 million guaranteed -- but the linebacker could miss a big chunk of time. An awful lot hinges on his upcoming court date.
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