Aldon Smith in interview published days before death: 'Definitely had better days'

In an interview published on YouTube four days before his death, Aldon Smith said "I’ve had better days" and was "struggling accepting" parts of his life.

Smith, who died at 36 on June 13, was an All-Pro pass rusher who was the seventh overall selection by the San Francisco 49ers in 2011. He also spent time with the-then Oakland Raiders, Dallas Cowboys and Seattle Seahawks.

Smith's cause of death has yet to be be revealed.

Tee Maultsby, a San Francisco Bay Area barber whose show “Laced Up” Smith appeared on, asked Smith how he was doing.

 "I’ve definitely had better days," Smith said.

When Maultsby asked him to elaborate, Smith replied:

“I kind of don’t. It’s something along the lines of something I think I’ve been dealing with my whole life and I’m just struggling accepting how it’s playing out right now. That sounded like a bunch of gibberish.

“To be honest, I’m grateful man. I’m in a place of gratitude right now.”

It's unknown when the interview was recorded. Three parts of the interview (roughly 25 minutes in total) have been published over a series of four days dating back to June 8.

Smith was found unresponsive in his car in Los Gatos, California, a friend of Smith told the San Francisco Chronicle.

During the interview, Smith detailed how his NFL days ended in 2021 when the Seahawks waived him following off-the-field legal issues.

"It didn’t have the ending that It maybe should have," Smith said of his NFL career, which included a nearly five-year hiatus because of repeated substance-abuse violations.

The University of Missouri product wasn’t sure what to do with the rest of his life and began working for a roofing company. As Smith described it, he was "broke, broke" and had just exited a relationship that ended in heartbreak.

"I was just like damn, I need to get my life back together," Smith said.

Smith knew he didn’t want to enter the coaching or broadcasting professions.

"I also knew I’m so used to being around other people that doing something by myself is a little scary, and I’m not sure I could do it," Smith said. "So I had to make the necessary adjustments."

Dealing with the typical culture shock of being in a locker room almost every day to not having that community aspect to rely upon was not an easy transition, Smith said. But the roofing job helped him believe everything would be all right, he said.

"I have nothing against football," Smith said.