Justin Smith Signs With The San Francisco 49ers

Justin Smith Signs With The San Francisco 49ers

Veteran Justin Smith started his NFL career in 2001 when he was just 21 years old. This Wednesday the defensive lineman negotiated and signed a two year extension with the San Francisco 49ers.

The past 6 months weren't fantastic for Smith as he recovered from his tricep injury that he sustained while playing against the New England Patriots on the 16th of December. The injury ended a pretty long streak of 185 consecutive starts.

The defensive lineman is sure he is back to 100 percent and says that the newly signed contract is a rare opportunity to retire from NFL “on your own terms”.

General Manager of the 49ers Trent Baalke said that Smith’s professionalism and leadership both on and off the field are a big part of the whole franchise’s success.

Smith negotiated his own extension saying that at this point in his career it wasn't about the money but more about wanting to play for the 49ers. He was in the last  season of his 6 year $45 million contract, and was due to make $7.5 million.

He also talked about his injury and how he is very pleased with the rehabilitation process saying that he is returning to the bench weighing over 400 pounds. Justin Smith added that being his first injury he was worried and may have went overboard with the questions about his recovery, but that in reality, it was easier than he expected.

Posted by Andre Monohan on Thursday June 20 2013, 6:05 AM EDT. Ref: mercurynews. Link. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0