Za’Darius Smith’s retirement caught the Eagles by surprise last season and the veteran outside linebacker explained the decision in his first press conference since coming out of retirement to join the Falcons. Smith said Tuesday that family issues led to his decision to step away from the game because it was the only way he could be with his mother during a difficult time. “I wasn’t supposed to retire,” Smith said. “I wasn’t going to tell the story, but I was going to tell it. I got a phone call from my mom’s doctor telling me she didn’t have much time left to be on this Earth. I let the team know. Obviously they weren’t trying to let me go, but that was the only thing I had left: to retire. So I retired.” Smith said his grandmother and father also passed away shortly after his mother’s death last year and became emotional when asked why he decided to return to action this year. “This is my happy place,” Smith said. “Go back, play football. I was in a dark place, but, you know, going out, running on the field, the fans, not just the fans, man, the joy I get from winning and just getting sacks.” Pearce’s suspension. He added that his mother “always wanted him to be in Atlanta with the Falcons” because it was close to the family’s home in Alabama, so family ties ended up pulling Smith on both ends of his brief retirement from the NFL.
