Legendary San Diego Chargers General Manager A.J. Smith has passed away at age 75. He’s survived by his wife and two children.
A.J. Smith rose up from being a PE teacher in Providence, Rhode Island to the ranks of the NFL. He served as the director of pro scouting with the San Diego Chargers from 1986-1987, before spending 14 seasons with the Buffalo Bills as director of pro personnel. He then went on to serve as the General Manager of the San Diego Chargers from 2003-2012.
Smith has a very complicated legacy amongst Chargers fans. When Smith took over the job in 2003, the team hadn’t been to the playoffs since 1995. Under his direction, the San Diego Chargers became a constant force in the AFC playoff picture, winning the AFC West five times and going from 2004 to 2011 without a losing record.
The 2006 team might have been the greatest team in the history of the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers. That season, the team went 14-2 with key players drafted by A.J. Smith making key contributions. That included the likes of Philip Rivers, Vincent Jackson, Shawne Merriman, and Antonio Gates.
At the same time, the team never got to a Super Bowl. They also let key pieces leave in free agency which contributed to their downfall. But the architect of their longest reign of success was A.J. Smith
A.J. Smith Rebuilt the Chargers
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A.J. Smith came over to the Chargers as part of a massive influx of former Bills personnel heading to the Chargers in 2001. After taking over as General Manager in 2003, he watched as a team with Drew Brees and LaDainian Tomlinson still managed to fail, falling to a 4-12 record. Smith determined that things had to change.
In 2004, he drafted Eli Manning with the first overall pick and traded him to the New York Giants for Philip Rivers and draft picks that ended up becoming Pro Bowlers Nate Kaeding and Shawne Merriman. This was perhaps the most notable trade of his run as General Manager. Rivers went on to be arguably next to Dan Fouts, the greatest quarterback in San Diego Chargers history.
For an organization that hadn’t been successful since losing in the Super Bowl in 1994 and a Wild Card loss in 1995, they had some key pieces but needed a serious retooling. Under the direction of A.J. Smith and the coaching of Marty Schottenheimer, the San Diego Chargers became a force starting in 2004. Smith had some extremely masterful draft picks throughout his tenure.
Smith drafted perrienal Pro Bowlers like Darren Sproles, Nick Hardwick, Shaun Phillips, and Eric Weddle. He was extremely masterful at drafting key contributors that kept the Chargers in contention. Even after firing Head Coach Marty Schottenheimer after the 2006 season, the team continued to make the playoffs with Norv Turner as the Head Coach.
An Extremely Controversial Figure in San Diego
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It wasn’t all sunshine for A.J. Smith with the “Bolts.” While he kept the team in contention, he didn’t do a good enough job to get them over the hill to a Super Bowl. The San Diego Chargers became known as a team that had the potential to beat the big teams but always found ways to beat themselves and fall short of the ultimate goal.
The biggest controversy has to be how the team let go of quarterback Drew Brees. It’s been noted that A.J. Smith was not a fan of Drew Brees which is why he traded for Philip Rivers. After Brees suffered a horrific injury at the end of the 2005 season, Smith let him walk to the New Orleans Saints, where he became a first-ballot Hall of Fame quarterback and Super Bowl Champion.
A.J. Smith also decided to let a personal rivalry with Marty Schottenheimer get in the way of winning and shockingly fired the coach after a 14-2 season in 2006. While Norv Turner managed to reach the postseason multiple times, the team never came close to the heights of the 2006 season and never reached the Super Bowl.
Smith also made extremely controversial decisions in letting several key players leave in free agency. That included the likes of Vincent Jackson, Antonio Cromartie, LaDainian Tomlinson, and Michael Turner amongst others. The team drafted great, but never quite replaced the players that they lost to the extent that it got them closer to winning a championship until both Norv Turner and A.J. Smith were fired in 2012.
A.J. Smith Will Forever Be Remembered
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Despite all of that, A.J. Smith will forever be remembered. Whether it’s for the good or the bad, he’s a central figure in the history of San Diego sports. The Chargers are in a place now where they look to contend the way they did under Smith’s tenure.
If A.J. Smith was the General Manager of the Chargers now, he would be proud of the offseason that the team just had. Smith might have a complicated legacy, but he did bring a lot of winning to San Diego. The NFL, as a whole, will miss him.
A.J. Smith rose up from being a regional scout to the General Manager of an NFL team. He was a director of pro personnel, an assistant director of college scouting, and a senior executive/consultant. He wore many different caps for various organizations.
It’s an inspirational tale when you stop and think about it. A.J. Smith went from being a PE teacher to an NFL General Manager. It’s the “American Dream” coming to fruition and a life well lived.
