Longtime NFL executive and former San Diego Chargers general manager A.J. Smith has died at age 75 after a seven-year battle with prostate cancer.
Smith’s son, Kyle Smith – the Atlanta Falcons’ assistant GM – announced his father’s passing on Sunday.
A.J., who spent 35 years in the NFL climbing up the ranks from part-time scout to GM of the Chargers, was San Diego’s winningest GM in franchise history with 98 wins over 10 seasons.
He famously traded two-time Super Bowl champion Eli Manning to the New York Giants after selecting him as the first overall pick of the 2004 NFL Draft despite the quarterback insisting that he would not play for the Chargers due to their treatment of their own signal-caller, Ryan Leaf, who was dealing with personal struggles at the time.
Manning’s trade to the Giants saw North Carolina State University prospect Philip Rivers (drafted fourth overall) go the other way along with a 2004 third-round pick (used to select kicker Nate Kaeding), a 2005 first-round pick and a 2005 fifth-round pick.
A.J. Smith was San Diego’s winningest GM in franchise history with 98 wins over 10 seasons
In 2005, the Chargers used their first round pick acquired from the Giants to select Shawne Merriman 12th overall. Merriman went on to win the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Manning went on to become the MVP of Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI.
The L.A. Chargers released a heartwarming statement from owner, Dean Spanos, on Smith’s passing.
‘Belying a tough, matter of fact and no nonsense persona – one synonymous with that of a true football guy – was A.J.’s softer side which included a tremendous love for his family, the NFL and the Chargers. The architect of one of the greatest chapters in franchise history’ Spanos said.
‘A.J. made everyone around him better with a singular focus and intensity that elevated our organization. Our hearts are with his wife Sue, son Kyle, daughter Andrea and the entire Smith family during this difficult time.’
Smith was behind a Chargers team that won five AFC West division titles and went through eight straight seasons (2004-2012) without a losing record, including four seasons of 11+ wins.
He had also been a scout for 12 years on various teams, including the Giants, New England Patriots, the then-Houston Oilers, Chicago Blitz and Pittsburgh Maulers, before becoming the Chargers pro personnel director in 1985.
Smith then went back to being a scout on the Buffalo Bills in 1986 before earning a promotion as assistant director of college scouting in 1989. He then became the franchise’s director of pro personnel (1993-200) before being hired by the Chargers again in 2001, as the team’s Director of pro personnel/assistant GM.
After his nine years as Chargers GM, the then-Washington Redskins hired Smith as senior executive/consultant in 2013. He stepped down from his position in 2015.
Smith won the Kentucky Wesleyan College Alumni Achievement Award in 2010, and was inducted into their Athletic Hall of Fame in 2013.