Pro Football Talk is reporting that the NFL will not reinstate Raiders LB Aldon Smith this season and plan to instead revisit his case on March 15 of 2017.
The NFL had been dragging their feet in regards to Smith’s case for some reason. However, it appears as though commissioner Roger Goodell ultimately decided Smith should miss the entire 2016 season before they consider allowing him back into the league.
Smith applied for a return to the NFL back on October 3, which appeared to open a 60-day window for Goodell to render a decision. The NFL later announced that there was no timetable for them to rule on Smith’s reinstatement.
The NFL is still expected to look into whether the Periscope video that appears to show him a hand-rolled cigarette violated the protocols required for a suspended player to be reinstated.
Smith entered a rehab facility soon after the video surfaced and spent 120 days there.
Smith, 27, is a former first-round pick of the 49ers back in 2010. He was cut loose by the 49ers shortly after a DUI incident last year, even though San Francisco picked up his fifth-year option.
Smith later signed a one-year deal with the Raiders that was worth up to $8 million, which was largely incentive-based. Oakland elected to re-sign Smith to a two-year, $11.5 million contract this past April, despite the fact that he was going to miss a large portion of the 2017 season.
In 2015, Smith has recorded 28 total tackles, 3.5 sacks, and three pass defenses over the course of nine games. Pro Football Focus currently rates Smith as the No. 33 edge defender out of 110 qualifying players.
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