PEOPLE’s Toria Sheffield highlighted a video featuring former Dallas Cowboys defensive end Aldon Smith. The athlete was interviewed by renowned professional barber Tee Maultsby, who enjoys conversing with his clients while cutting their hair. In that over 10-minute chat, the late defensive end subtly revealed signs of his personal struggles just days before his death at age 36. Aldon Smith shared details about his life shortly before his shocking death.
Video Released Days Before Death
Tee Maultsby posted the video on YouTube on June 8, 2026. Aldon Smith passed away on June 13, 2026. The video captured the following life details:
“How are you feeling today?” the Laced Up podcast host asked.
“I’ve definitely had better days,” Smith replied.
“You wanna elaborate on that?” the celebrity barber inquired.
“Yeah, but I kinda don’t. It’s along the lines of something I’ve been dealing with my whole life, and I’m just struggling with accepting how it’s playing out right now,” Smith said.
Smith felt he was talking gibberish, but Maultsby disagreed, stating, “We all go through stuff.” Smith later expressed gratitude and a state of thankfulness. “It’s been a tough week. It’s been rewarding, and it’s starting to pay off. Things are starting to happen,” he said.
Bittersweet Return to the Bay Area
Smith later shared that returning to the San Francisco Bay Area was “bittersweet.” The welcome was warm, and the people were like family, but the former 49ers defensive end wished he had certain things with him before coming back. He had not anticipated returning to the Bay, but noted that his situation had changed. “I don’t know if I’ve gotten a chance to really enjoy it or let my guard down to enjoy it,” Smith said.
Feeling Out of Place After Football
Aldon Smith felt that everyone fit into a mold after leaving football. “Everybody was doing something that they had felt comfortable with, or they were following the mold,” Smith said. “You play football, and you coach football. I have nothing against football. I played football. But I knew that environment as an occupation. On the coaching side, it’s not something that I had an interest in or being an analyst. It’s just not me.”
While playing football at a high level, he knew coaching or analysis was not his goal. He did not want to become a coach because of his unorthodox way of learning the game. It was difficult for him to teach others when he did not fully understand it himself. He learned football by playing with older, bigger players. Thus, playing with his age group in high school was not challenging. He credited his ability to observe, duplicate, and understand the game. He did not rely on his size as his primary advantage; he stood 6-foot-4 and weighed 225 pounds.
Lack of Consistent Praise from Coaches
The Oakland Raiders defensive end said he never developed a “big head” or considered himself “that guy” during his playing days. He never received consistent praise from his coaches. They often approached him with the preconception that he had been “butt-kissed” or coddled by previous coaches. This led them to be tougher on him to prevent arrogance.
He was always coached hard and worked hard to produce results. In college, he felt his coaches appreciated him mainly because he worked hard and delivered on the field, not due to personal favoritism. “My head was always so in the place of the external needed to be happy with me. It was never...that was the noise. I was never in a position of being consistently praised for what I was doing,” Smith said. “I never had a coach consistently. And every other coach thought I was getting my a** kissed from the previous coach. So, I’ve always been coached hard. From every coach who coached me the hardest because they already think either I’ve a big head or I come into it with prior butt kissing.”
Whenever he entered the locker room, he felt he was not good enough. He believed he was never the best player on any of his teams.
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About the Author
Dr. Arati Kulkarni Srivastava spent six years studying medicine and three years in management, but her passion for writing was too strong to ignore. Having been vice-captain of her college cricket team for four years, she understands an NFL quarterback’s competitive spirit. She creates compelling football stories that leave a mark on readers’ hearts. Every morning, she begins her day by reading the TOI sports section to see scores. In the evenings, she solves mysteries in the world of Olivia Benson from Law & Order: SVU. The sea in Mumbai brings her tranquility, and Kishore Kumar’s melodies soothe her soul.
