Longtime Ravens CB Jimmy Smith Retires from NFL

Baltimore Ravens cornerback Jimmy Smith was a first-round pick.

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Former Ravens cornerback Jimmy Smith has officially retired from the NFL.

"I’ve been through too many injuries, and I always had a sense of [feeling] like I’m always trying to get back to even," Smith said. "You’re coming off an Achilles, you’re coming off a Lisfranc, you go right into there, and it’s not like I get to go against No. 3 all the time; it’s like, I’m going against the top guy. So, it was always an uphill climb for me to – especially coming fresh off of an injury – trying to get back to just being who I was before it. 

"And that was a battle early on, but later as it gets, it becomes much tougher, and my body kept doing it. Then I get that freaking ankle injury last year, and it was just like, ‘I’m kind of over just having to battle back constantly.’”

Here are several key notes about Smith’s notable 11-year playing career – all with the Ravens:

• Smith appeared in 128 regular season games (90 starts), ranking No. 18 on the franchise’s all-time games played list. He saw action in the third-most games ever among Ravens defensive backs, trailing only S Ed Reed (160) and CB Chris McAlister (135).

• A member of Baltimore’s 2012 Super Bowl XLVII Championship team, Smith also played in 10 postseason contests for a total of 138 career games in a Ravens uniform. He helped lead Baltimore to six postseason berths during his career.

• Smith recorded 369 total tackles, 14 interceptions, 74 passes defensed, three defensive touchdowns, three sacks, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. He owns the fifth-most tackles among defensive backs in franchise history (S Ed Reed – 661, CB Chris McAlister – 490, DB Lardarius Webb – 473 & S Dawan Landry – 387).
• Smith is one of only six Ravens – with a minimum of 10 years served – to play their entire career in Baltimore: LB Ray Lewis – 17 seasons, P Sam Koch – 16, G Marshal Yanda – 13, T Jonathan Ogden – 12 & Reed – 11.

• Smith ranks in the Top 10 on several franchise career charts, including defensive touchdowns (tied for No. 4), passes defensed (No. 5), interceptions (No. 7), solo tackles (No. 8) and interception return yards (No. 10). His passes defensed and interceptions place him third and fifth, respectively, among players from his 2011 draft class.

• During the 2012 postseason, Smith tallied three tackles and two passes defensed, including a clutch pass breakup in Super Bowl XLVII’s final goal-line stand to help seal Baltimore’s second world championship.

• In Baltimore’s 2018 AFC North Division-clinching title game, Smith registered a single-game career-best two interceptions and totaled a game-high three passes defensed.

• During Smith’s time as a Raven (2011-21), Baltimore’s defense allowed the NFL’s second-fewest yards (326.0) and third-fewest points (20.1) per game.

• Originally selected by Baltimore in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft, Smith is a Fontana, Calif., native who attended the University of Colorado.