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Here's the rumor.  Yes, we know it's a lonnngshot.  And the rumor is really nothing more than a writer saying "This would make sense."  That's just stating the obvious.  Let's move on from the obvious, because 31 other NFL teams are at least thinking about the plusses and minuses here.

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First of all, Aldon Smith gets about a sack per game and it looks more like four sacks a game.  The fantasy of watching him do this to the 49er's, as a Seahawk, and for the league minimum ....

It escapes Dr. D why NFL fans should be so enraged at Smith.  He's not a wife-beater, not a murderer, not a drug dealer ... he's a drunk.  Don't you have anybody close to you who is a drunk?  I do, and I can assure you that between two drunks, the difference between "life destroyed" and "things going okay" is 99.8% luck.  Just luck.

Looking at his arrest history (off Wiki):

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On January 28, 2012, Aldon Smith was arrested for driving under the influence in Miami Beach, Florida.^[19][20]

On June 30, 2012, Smith was believed to have suffered stab wounds when attempting to break up a fight at a party at his residence. Two other people were shot in the incident.^[21] On October 9, 2013, Smith was charged with "three felony counts of illegal possession of an assault weapon" relating to the stabbing incident. The charges were later reduced to misdemeanors.^[22]

On September 20, 2013, Smith was involved in a single vehicle accident in San Jose, California. He was subsequently arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and possession of marijuana. After the loss to the Indianapolis Colts in the third week of the football season, he voluntarily entered a rehabilitation facility, to be put onto the non-football injury list with an indefinite leave of absence.^[23]

On April 13, 2014, Smith was detained and arrested following an incident at the Los Angeles International Airport in which Smith became belligerent and uncooperative with a TSA agent, who alleged Smith claimed he was carrying a bomb.^[24] After interviews revealed that Smith did not clearly state he was carrying a bomb, the Los Angeles City Attorney decided to drop the charges. Smith was suspended for 9 games for the 2014 season.

On August 6, 2015, he was arrested in Santa Clara, California, for an alleged hit and run, driving under the influence, and vandalism charges.^[25]He was released by the 49ers the following day as a result.^[26]

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Jan. 28 2012:  Hold up your hand if you have never driven while buzzed. ...

I think all cars should probably be equipped with breathalyzer ignition lockouts.  There's nothing cute about vehicular manslaughter.  But how can a man get outraged about some other man doing something he has done himself?

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June 30, 2012:  He was at a party with unsavory elements present.  I have a niece who used to do this virtually every weekend, clubs and etc etc.  She was a nice, well-intentioned girl who liked to drink and get crazy.  I didn't hate her or consider her less than me.  I considered that she was going to get killed or worse if she didn't stop.  Something really bad happened to her, and she stopped.  Today, I'd give her a job.  I don't think she should be career-blacklisted for her party streak.

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Sept. 20, 2013:  See Jan. 28 2012.  The man cannot control his partying.  There are a whale of a lot of people who can't.  I'm guessing that you don't want Boeing to attach your employment to your Friday night behavior?

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April 13, 2014:  For getting belligerent with the TSA, I suggest we give Smith a medal.  I'm only half-kidding.

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Aug 6, 2015:  He was hammered again, driving his car, and he parked it like a drunk would park his car.  He staggered off and then staggered back to get arrested.  As we all know, the man cannot control his drinking.

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I don't know what % of current active NFL players are alcoholics.  25%?  More?  Aldon Smith's problems are extremely visible, but to me there's a big danger of hypocrisy here.  Judging a person by a different standard because the circumstances offend you.  The NFL sets the standard for hypocrisy in American society, so you can plan on their suspending Smith for a year.  Of course, that makes Smith the ultimate redshirt draft pick for some team willing to invest in him.

Smith did violate probation; hopefully Mojician can give us an idea of what real jail time (if any) he's looking at.  It probably won't help his cause that the D.A. has a chance to grandstand here.

Also, I don't know exactly how an NFL team gives Smith a better chance to succeed than he's had in the past.  Make his play contingent on living with a personal trainer who wears a chauffeur cap?  "You start a car one time and we're done?"  Is there any chance that, with a year to think it over, Smith would accept that condition?

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I dunno.  But I'm not mad at Aldon Smith, and after he suffers the appropriate consequences, I think it'd be pretty fun watching him rush off the edge in front of the Legion of Boom.

My $0.02,

Dr D