Steve Smith is preparing to call it a career.
Smith, the 37-year-old receiver who is in his third year with the Ravens after playing 13 years with the Panthers, said today that he expects Sunday’s game to be his last.
“I’m about 89 percent sure,” Smith said with a smile, referencing his jersey number. “I’m pretty sure I know what I want to do. I’ve got great support from my family, my wife supports me whichever way I want to go. My boys want me to still play, but there’s a little girl, my baby who wants her daddy. Football is a conduit, something that gives you a platform, good and bad, but it gives you an opportunity. Football has given me more than I probably could give football back. . . . This is probably my last game.”
A fiery competitor early in his career who sometimes let his temper get the best of him, Smith has become a veteran leader in Baltimore without losing any of that competitive fire. The Ravens would welcome him back if he wanted to play next year, but not many wide receivers keep going at 38, and Smith sounds ready to walk away and wrap up a great career on Sunday.
