July 23, 2008 10:15 PM

Smith's story worthy of Hall of Fame consideration

Truth be told, I shed my goatee a few years back because there were people who confused me for Broncos wide receiver Rod Smith. Maybe I should grow it back, and let it continue to grow until Smith is voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

See, in my biased mind Smith deserves to be honored with the game's all-time greats. I've known him since he joined the Broncos as an undrafted free agent in 1994.

True story: In December of that year, Smith wanted to make the trip to Kansas City. The former Missouri Southern star was on the Broncos' practice squad, and those players usually weren't taken on the road.

Smith wanted me to ask then-Broncos head coach Wade Phillips if he could make the trip. I thought, 'Wow - he wants to play on the team and he's too shy to speak to the coach about a road trip? He won't last long.'

Way wrong, I was. Smith produced 11,389 receiving yards (19th on the NFL's all-time receiving list), 849 receptions (12th on the all-time list) and 70 touchdowns (including one rushing and one punt return).

Year No. 13 for Smith was spent recovering and rehabbing hip surgeries. When he announces his retirement, it will mark the end of one of pro football's most remarkable journeys. "The guy was undrafted, and he didn't want to go home," former Broncos tight end Shannon Sharpe told me.

"Going back to Texarkana (Smith's hometown) was not an option. Opportunity knocked and he didn't mind the noise."

One of my favorite moments occurred on September 17, 1995. At the time I lived in Raleigh, North Carolina, and one of the local AM radio stations picked up Washington Redskins' broadcasts. Just so happens the Redskins were playing the Broncos that afternoon at Mile High Stadium.

The score was 31-31, and Redskins' color analyst Sonny Jurgensen was saying something that was hard to make out. As luck would have it, the broadcast was fading before the game's final play. Turns out I missed hearing Smith's first NFL catch.

Smith's first career catch? A 43-yard, game-winning touchdown thrown by future Hall of Famer John Elway. And he out-jumped another future Hall of Famer, Redskins cornerback Darrell Green, to make the grab.

Former Broncos running back Terrell Davis once told me this about Smith - "What's that saying, jack of all trades but master of none? Rod is the master of all. I don't care what it is. I've seen the man play basketball, poker, dominoes and shoot skeet . . .

"I would always ask, 'How is Rod good at everything?'"

As time passes you're lucky to remember the little things. For me, it's the Isuzu Smith used to drive as a rookie. Or the small condo he lived in. That was 1994. Today he drives the luxury sedan and lives in the Cherry Hills mansion built by the construction company he owns.

I interviewed Smith once for Colorado Avid Golfer. He told me, "Some people look at the things we can acquire - the houses, the cars, the jewelry . . . I keep telling my kids, 'Don't look at what we have, but look at how we got it.' That's more important.

"To me, how I got here is more important than what I got while I was here."

I think there ought to be more coming to Smith. The Broncos certainly will put his name upon the Ring of Fame - and it should happen sooner than the five-year waiting period. As for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Smith has the numbers. Whether the voters will realize just how amazing his story is will be up for debate in five years.

Rod Smith deserves to be remembered as one of the greatest players to ever wear a Broncos uniform. He played hard and played to win every week.

Smith's story is the stuff all Hall of Famers should envy.

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