49ers Aldon Smith smiles following the 49ers’ win in the NFC divisional round playoff game between the Green Bay Packers and San Francisco 49ers on Jan. 12, 2013, at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Aldon Smith, who put up one of the greatest rookie seasons by a defender in NFL history when he debuted with the San Francisco 49ers as an elite pash rusher in 2011 but whose career faltered among legal trouble and suspensions, died Saturday, the team announced. He was 36.