Former NFL cornerback Alphonso Smith Jr. died by suicide in Florida on September 2, 2026, and his family now believes Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy may have played a role in the collapse that led to his death.
Smith, a former standout at Wake Forest University and a 37th overall pick who went on to play for the Denver Broncos and Detroit Lions, had been dealing with severe personal and mental health struggles behind the scenes. Those issues came into public view in the hours before his death, when he posted a final message on Facebook that laid bare how bad things had become.
In that post, Smith said he was fighting “demons” and wrote that he had needed help but did not get it. He also apologized to his children, family and friends for the disappointment and hurt he believed he had caused. The message, according to the source account, came shortly before his death on a Wednesday afternoon.
Emergency deputies later responded to a report of a suicide attempt at a housing community in Pahokee. Smith was taken to a local hospital, where he died from his injuries.
His family says they have noticed major changes in his personality and emotional state before his death, and they believe repeated head impacts from his football career may have contributed. Smith spent years taking hits as an NFL cornerback, and the family sees a connection between those blows and the depression, paranoia and mood swings they say became more severe.
“His brain is being studied for CTE. We think it’s a factor,” his younger brother Alkevius Smith confirmed.
The family is now seeking a formal brain autopsy in hopes of determining whether CTE was behind the emotional spiral that preceded his death.
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