Former Houston Oilers defensive tackle passes away suddenly at 64

Former defensive tackle for the Houston Oilers Doug Smith suddenly passed away at 64-years-old.

According to Smith’s wife Becky in an article from Pro Football Talk, Smith suffered from a heart attack despite a clean bill of health from his cardiologist.

“It was unexpected,” Smith’s wife, Becky, told Berman. “Two months ago, he got a clean bill of health for his heart. He went to his cardiologist and [the tests] came back his heart was good, but you know we know even healthy people can have a heart attack.”

Houston Oilers DT Doug Smith originally played in the USFL

While Smith’s numbers as a defensive tackle throughout his career don’t tell the whole story of how much he contributed to the field, as is the case with most interior defensive linemen, his decision to start his career in the USFL permanently left his mark in the football history books.

Instead of heading to the NFL for his rookie season, Smith chose to sign with the Birmingham Stallions of the USFL, despite being selected in the second round of the 1984 NFL Draft by the Oilers.

Smith, who played for the Auburn Tigers in college, ended up signing a four-year, $1.2 million deal with a $350,000 signing bonus to play with the Stallions. Smith immediately made waves in the USFL claiming All-USFL honors as a rookie with five sacks, which would end up being more than he ever had in a season during his time in the NFL.

The USFL did not have a 1985 season, forcing Smith to head to the Oilers of the NFL, where he was originally drafted. Smith became a consistent interior defensive lineman for the Oilers, recording 14 sacks throughout the course of his career before retiring after the 1992 season at 32-years-old.

Smith even powered through a gunshot to the knee in 1990, continuing to play for the Oilers despite being shot near his childhood home in North Carolina.