Where are they now: Timmy Smith

Posted on June 29, 2026 by Steve Thomas

June 29, 2026

by Steve Thomas

This is the third in my series of “Where are they now” columns, which are in no way reflective of the total lack of Washington football-related news…maybe. I started with Dexter Manley (click here to read), did Charles Mann last week (click here to read). Therefore, for this week’s entry, I thought I’d stay in the “legends” category and do former Redskins running back Timmy Smith[1]. Smith has had an interesting life, to put it mildly, his story will be an entertaining one. He’s in the “legends” category for different reasons than are Manley and Mann. Suffice to say that Smith is one of the most memorable figures in Super Bowl history.

Smith is originally from Hobbs, New Mexico, where he attended Hobbs High School. He graduated in 1982 and was recruited to Texas Tech University on a football scholarship. Smith stayed at Texas Tech for 5 seasons, during which he played a total of 55 games, and had 292 carries for 1313 yards, for an average of 4.5 yards per attempt, and 8 touchdowns, along with 41 receptions for 401 yards and 1 additional touchdown[2]. His most productive season was 1984, in which he had 164 carries for 711 yards, 4.3 yards per carry, and 4 touchdowns, although his best yards per carry figure was in 1985. That season, he had 26 carries for 140 yards, for an average of 5.4 yards per carry.

As a result of his collegiate production, the Redskins drafted him in the fifth round of the 1987 NFL Draft, 117th overall. Smith played in three seasons as a professional, 1987 and 1988 with Washington, and 1990 with the Dallas Cowboys. In total, Smith played in 22 regular season games, including 9 starts, and had 190 carries for 602 yards, 3.2 yards per carry, and 3 touchdowns, plus 9 receptions in 17 targets, for 51 yards[3]. He also played in three playoff games in Washington’s 1987 Super Bowl run, including 1 start, and had 51 carries for 342 yards, 6.7 yards per carry, and 2 touchdowns, plus 1 reception for 9 yards. This included his most famous game, which was his legendary performance in Super Bowl XXII in 1988, in which the Redskins defeated the Denver Broncos by a score of 41 – 10. In that game, Smith had 22 carries for 204 yards, a long of 58 yards, and 2 touchdowns, plus 1 reception for 9 yards. In an interview with Van Tate of the Albuquerque television station KRQE in 2023, he cited Washington’s famous “counter trey” play and the impact of running it behind linemen Joe Jacoby and Russh Grimm as being important to his accomplishment that day[4].

His 204 yards remains the highest total rushing yards for a single player in a Super Bowl in NFL history and is likely one of the most well-known rushing games ever. It is without a doubt Smith’s biggest professional accomplishment. Unfortunately, things went downhill, publicly, soon after. His agent convinced him he deserved a new contract from the team afterwards, and he skipped offseason activities as a result[5]. The team ultimately refused the contract demand. Smith then reported to training camp overweight.

There were also rumors of drug use and of Smith associating with unsavory characters. His agent gave him a drug test, which he passed. Washington allowed Smith to start for the first half of the season despite the offseason and training camp controversies; however, he was ultimately replaced by Jamie Morris and Kelvin Bryant. Smith finished the 1988 season with 8 starts and 155 carries for 470 yards, which was an average of 3.0 yards per carry.

Washington ended up leaving Smith unprotected as a Plan B free agent[6] after the season. The San Diego Chargers – whose head coach at the time was former Washington offensive coordinator Dan Henning – then signed him. However, the Chargers released Smith in part due to an off the field domestic dispute with a girlfriend[7]. Smith later claimed that the woman hit herself on her head with a phone and then blamed Smith[8]. He was also rumored to be associating with a known drug dealer. San Diego released him in final roster cuts on September 5, 1989[9].

He sat out the 1989 season, but the Cowboys brought him into camp in 1990. He made the roster and started the first game of the year when Emmitt Smith had sat out the entire preseason as a rookie due to a contract holdout. That game went badly, when he had 6 carries for only 6 yards, and he was released the next day[10]. That marked the end of Smith’s NFL career. He signed with the Baltimore Stallions of the CFL in 1994, but didn’t make the regular season roster[11] and never played professionally again.

Things went further south in 2005, dramatically so, when he and his brother were arrested and criminally charged when they attempted to sell cocaine to an undercover DEA agent. The two were accused of making 8 separate sales to the undercover agent that year. His drug sales were reportedly done on the side while Smith worked as a counselor to help raise money for a friend impact by Hurricane Katrina[12]. Smith pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and was sentenced to 30 months in prison as a part of plea bargain, and ordered to pay $88,000 in unpaid child support[13]. He served 13 months in prison and then did an additional 7 months in a halfway house.

Smith worked at the Denver airport after his release from the halfway house in March, 2008, and also coached youth football in 2009[14]. Smith called his actions “the stupidest mistake”, stating, “Guys make mistakes. It’s all about what you do after that. You try to move on and be a productive citizen. You still have to be a role model. I was an embarrassment to my team-mates and my family. I’m a much better person for going through that. You got to build it back.”[15]

Later, Smith obtained employment working as a salesman in oilfields for an energy services company. As of 2023, he still worked for the energy company and lived in Denver, Colorado, with his family[16].

He recently talked about his health status as a result of his time in professional football, stating that he’d had neck surgery, tension in his back, and mentioned knee replacement[17].

Smith’s story might be unique in NFL history, for the extent of the highs and the depth of the lows. He is a tragic tale of someone who simply couldn’t handle the pressure of being at the very pinnacle of the NFL, and probably had some bad advice and bad people around him, and it cost him everything. He will certainly always be a legend to Washington Redskins fans. I wish him the best and hope he’s still doing well.

[1] Thanks to our reader HTTRsince65 for the suggestion.

[2] All collegiate stats courtesy of www.sports-reference.com/cfb/.

[3] All pro stats courtesy of www.pro-football-reference.com.

[4] https://www.krqe.com/sports/super-bowl-rushing-record-holder-timmy-smith-is-in-van-tates-sports-office/

[5] https://web.archive.org/web/20160916060029/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1992-01-24/sports/9201040947_1_timmy-smith-super-bowl-xxvi-smith-s

[6] This was a status in the version of the CBA effective at the time.

[7] https://www.si.com/nfl/2016/01/28/timmy-smith-washington-forgotten-nfl-super-bowl-hero

[8] https://www.si.com/nfl/2016/01/28/timmy-smith-washington-forgotten-nfl-super-bowl-hero

[9] https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-09-05-sp-1597-story.html

[10] https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/jan/27/timmy-smith-super-bowl-legend

[11] https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/jan/27/timmy-smith-super-bowl-legend

[12] https://www.profootballhistory.com/timmy-smith/