Former Dallas Cowboys Player Reportedly Facing Prison Time

The sad saga of Aldon Smith has taken another unfortunate twist.

The once-productive pass rusher had his NFL career derailed, multiple times, due to off-field incidents.

Now, a report has emerged from TMZ that Smith could be facing up to 16 months in prison.

According to the report, Smith has entered a plea of nolo contendere in response to a felony charge of drunk driving stemming from a December 2021 car crash. In exchange, Smith will face no more than 16 months in federal prison.

Smith reportedly had a blood-alcohol content of .15 when he crashed his GMC Sierra pickup truck into a stopped vehicle in Northern California.

It's far from the first legal trouble for Smith, who has been arrested numerous other times for driving other the influence and faced a domestic abuse charge in 2018.

His off-field issues sidetracked a once-promising football career. After being selected with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, Smith was named the league's defensive rookie of the year in 2011 and a first-team All Pro in 2012. 

However, he never again played a full season. He missed the 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 campaigns due to suspension.

Smith made a comeback in 2020 with the Cowboys. He started all 16 of the team's games and record 48 tackles and five sacks. That earned him a contract with the Seattle Seahawks, but he was released prior to the 2021 season due to "breach of trust."

Smith will learn his exact punishment for the DUI at a sentencing hearing in March.