Don Smerek

Donald Frederick Smerek (born December 20, 1957) is a former professional American football defensive lineman in the National Football League. He played seven seasons for the Dallas Cowboys.^[1]

Early years

Smerek attended Basic High School where he practiced football and basketball. He accepted a scholarship to the University of Nevada, where he was an All-Big Sky selection in 1979 as a defensive end.^[2]

Professional career

Smerek was signed as an undrafted free agent in 1980 by the Dallas Cowboys. In training camp he fractured his ribs and was placed on the injured reserve list.^[3]

In 1981 he was moved to defensive tackle, but suffered a knee injury in the second game of the regular season and was placed on the injured reserve list. While being inactive, he had a traffic related argument and was shot in the chest.^[4] His physical fitness helped him survive the injury and return to play football the next season.

In 1982 he was a starter for the Cowboys in the playoffs, replacing the injured John Dutton.^[5] The next season, he began to substitute Dutton on passing downs, finishing fourth on the team with 6 sacks and a career high 17 tackles.

In 1985, he suffered a right shoulder injury that forced him to miss training camp and six regular season games after being placed on the injured reserve list on September 10.^[6] He would match his career high 17 tackles.

In 1986 he missed the first 5 games of the season because of a sprained knee and registered 4.5 sacks. The next year he was placed on the injured reserve list with a sprained knee, before being activated in October.^[7] He retired after being waived before the 1988 season started.^[8]

Smerek was one of the strongest players on the team and a productive backup as a pass rushing specialist. During his career he had a chance to earn a starting position on different occasions, but untimely injuries were his downfall.

References