Edward Martin Smith (born June 5, 1969) is a former

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

who played in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

, and

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

from 1997 to 1999. Prior to that, Smith played

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

in the

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...

systems of the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

, and

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

. His nephew is Irv Smith Jr., tight end for the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

and his brother is Irv Smith, also a former NFL tight end.

High school and baseball career

Smith grew up in the Browns Mills section of

Pemberton Township, New Jersey Pemberton Township is a Township (New Jersey), township in Burlington County, New Jersey, Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 26,903, a decrease of 1,009 (−3.6% ...

and played football and baseball at

Pemberton Township High School Pemberton Township High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grade from Pemberton Township, in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary ...

before being drafted by the White Sox in the 7th round of the 1987 MLB Draft. He declined

football scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on their ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the United States and ...

s to

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with ca ...

and

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

to begin his professional baseball career out of high school, and played in the White Sox minor league system from 1987 to 1991. He then played for the Brewers system from 1991 to 1993, the Cubs system in 1994, and the Indians system in 1995. His baseball career peaked at the Triple-A level in 1995 and ended following that season at age 26. Primarily a

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...

, Smith also played at

first base A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

and in the

outfield The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In bat and ball games ...

later in his career.

Football career

Smith then began a career in professional football, playing at tight end with the Frankfurt Galaxy of the

NFL Europe NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa) was a professional American football league that functioned as the List of developmental and minor sports leagues, developmental minor league of the Nati ...

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

. He was signed to the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in August 1996 where he remained for the rest of the season. In 1997, he was signed to the

practice squad and was promoted to the team's active roster during the season. His first game in uniform was against a

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

team that included his brother, Irv. The brothers would again be on opposing teams in 1998, with Irv playing for the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

. Smith won an

NFC NFC usually refers to: * Near-field communication, a set of communication protocols for electronic devices * National Football Conference, part of US National Football League NFC may also refer to: Psychology * Need for cognition, in psychol ...

championship with the Falcons in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

. He split the

1999 NFL season The 1999 NFL season was the 80th regular season (NFL), regular season of the National Football League (NFL). The Cleveland Browns returned to the field for the first time since the 1995 NFL season, 1995 season, while the Tennessee Oilers chan ...

between the

and

, and his NFL career ended following that season. Smith then played for the Birmingham Thunderbolts of the XFL during the league's only season in 2001.

Later life

The EZ Sports Talk Show debuted on the Phoenix, AZ airwaves on June 4, 2011. Smith launched the show live on KXXT 1010AM in Phoenix. The show was also streamed live on 3 websites and available on podcast as well. The EZ Sports Talk Show aired for 2+ years on KXXT. During a brief hiatus, Smith maintained his presence as a radio personality in the Phoenix area and was also featured in some national spots. On March 4, 2017, EZ Sports Talk was relaunched on NBC Sports Radio KDUS, 1060AM. The show is broadcast live every Saturday from 10:00am – noon, hosted by Smith and his partner Jim Marshall. The EZ Sports Talk Show format features a weekly in-depth look at the local sports landscape, in addition to national storylines and hot topics. Smith's background, with 9 years of minor league baseball and 6 years of professional football, has provided him with a unique knowledge and expertise of the sports world. Paired with Marshall's superior baseball knowledge and overall passion for Arizona sports, the duo provide great content. Smith is also a motivational/inspirational speaker. He shares his inspirational message with audiences across the country and around the globe. With speeches tailored to leaders, youth sports, and business executives, Smith shares insights and lessons from his life journey and pro sports career to help others focus their energy on achieving their goals and increasing performance.

References

External links

* Minor league baseball career statistics a
Baseball-Reference
* Football career statistics a

an
The Football Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Ed 1969 births Living people Pemberton Township High School alumni People from Pemberton Township, New Jersey Atlanta Falcons players Philadelphia Eagles players Frankfurt Galaxy players Detroit Lions players American football tight ends South Bend White Sox players Sarasota White Sox players Birmingham Barons players Stockton Ports players Beloit Brewers players El Paso Diablos players Orlando Cubs players Canton-Akron Indians players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Players of American football from Trenton, New Jersey Baseball players from Burlington County, New Jersey Baseball players from Trenton, New Jersey Birmingham Thunderbolts players Players of American football from Burlington County, New Jersey 20th-century American sportsmen