Mike Smith

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

A five-time Pro Bowl selection and four-time All-Pro (including a 2011 selection from Pro Football Focus), Smith emerged as one of the NFL's most productive wide receivers in history, leading the league in catches, receiving yards, and touchdowns in 2005. At the time of his retirement, Smith ranked seventh in NFL career all-purpose yards (19,180), seventh in NFL career receiving yards (sixth among wide receivers all-time) (14,731), twelfth in career receptions (1,031), and 26th in receiving touchdowns (81). Smith amassed (89) total touchdowns in the regular season and (100) total touchdowns including the postseason. Smith emerged as one of the most statistically efficient wide receivers of all-time, in the 2005 NFL season Smith became the only player in NFL history to lead the league in receiving yards, receiving touchdowns and receptions (receiving triple crown) despite being on a team that was ranked (28th) in pass attempts. In the 2008 NFL season Smith became the only player in NFL history to lead the league in receiving yards per game despite being on an offense that was last in pass attempts. In 2008, Smith produced the highest yards per team pass attempt (RY/TPA) in the modern era with a rating of (4.03). Smith also has the highest yards per route run (YPRR) in NFL history with a rating of (3.87) from 2008. Smith is currently tied for 5th all-time in 100-yard receiving games alongside Andre Johnson and Terrell Owens with (51). Smith’s dominance extended into the postseason, where he holds the NFL record for the highest career receiving yards per game average (91.0) among players with a minimum of 10 playoff games.

In Their Own Story

The arena lights hummed above the ice as Smith leaned against the glass at center stage. He watched the puck glide toward the net, not with the panic of a goalie needing to stop it, but with the calm calculation of a commander who had orchestrated every defensive shift. The roar from the crowd was deafening, yet in that moment, he remembered the silence of his own crease years prior—the quiet focus required when everything rested on one save.

Reader's Guide

Smith attended University High School in Los Angeles, and was a letterman in football and track & field. In football, he played running back and defensive back, and was an All-Metro League selection as well as an All-California Interscholastic Federation selection. Smith graduated from University High School in 1997. In track & field, he set a handful of school records, was named as an All-City selection as a high-hurdler, and also excelled in the triple jump and 300m hurdles. He had personal-bests of 14.95 seconds in the 110m hurdles and 38.73 seconds in the 300m hurdles. After graduating from high school, Smith attended Santa Monica College. While playing for the Santa Monica Corsairs football team, Smith was noticed to be a talented football player, and earned a starting position. During this time, Smith was teammates with future NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson. Santa Monica's head coach, Robert Taylor, encouraged Smith to not play for riches or fame, but to play so that he might earn a scholarship to a Division-I school. He also advised Smith and Johnson to not do touchdown celebrations. Smith took Taylor's advice to heart, and excelled in his academics, not missing a single day of classes while attending Santa Monica. After completing two years at Santa Monica College, Smith transferred to the University of Utah, where he established himself as a standout wideout for the Utah Utes football team in the Mountain West Conference where he was a teammate of future NFL running back Mike Anderson. While at the University of Utah, Smith set a record for yards per catch with a 20.6 average, and was chosen to play for the conference's all-star team twice. In his first season on the team, he ranked 4th in the NCAA in both punt return yards (495) and yard per return (17.1). However, he missed their bowl game in his final season due to injury. After the Blue–Gray All-Star game on December 25, 2000, Smith began to receive attention from various NFL scouts. He was named offensive MVP of the January 13, 2001, East–West Shrine Game. Smith finished his time at Utah with 78 receptions for 1,608 yards and 12 touchdowns, with another 1,365 return yards and 4 touchdowns on special teams. He and his wife have endowed an athletics scholarship at the University of Utah. The Carolina Panthers chose Smith in the third round (74th overall) during the 2001 NFL draft. Smith spent a m

Did You Know?

• Smith returned the opening kickoff of his first professional game for a touchdown.
• In 2005, Smith became the only player in NFL history to lead the league in receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, and receptions (receiving triple crown) despite being on a team ranked 28th in pass attempts.
• Smith holds the NFL record for highest career receiving yards per game average (91.0) in the postseason among players with a minimum of 10 playoff games.
• Smith was teammates with future NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson at Santa Monica College.