Paul Edward Smith was a collegiate

College football

College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

 and professional American football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 defensive end

Defensive end

Defensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...

. Smith was selected in the 1968 Common Draft

Common Draft

The Common Draft was the name given to the selection of college football players in a combined draft from 1967 to 1969 by the American Football League and the National Football League . This took place after the AFL-NFL merger agreement in 1966....

 by the American Football League

American Football League

The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...

's Denver Broncos

Denver Broncos

The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 and played in the National Football League

National Football League

The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

 for the Broncos and Washington Redskins

Washington Redskins

The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...

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Smith wore number 70 with the Broncos and was inducted into the Denver Broncos' Ring of Fame in 1986 along with quarterbacks Frank Tripucka

Frank Tripucka

Francis Joseph Tripucka is a former American collegiate and Professional Football quarterback, at Notre Dame, in the National Football League, in the Canadian Football League, and in the early American Football League.-Notre Dame Fighting Irish:Tripucka was backup quarterback to Heisman Trophy...

 and Charley Johnson

Charley Johnson

Charley Lane Johnson is a former quarterback in the NFL. During his 15-year career he played for 3 teams; the St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Oilers, and Denver Broncos. During his collegiate career at New Mexico State he became the only person to date to be named Most Valuable Player of the Sun Bowl...

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Personal

Smith was born in Ada, Oklahoma

Ada, Oklahoma

Ada is a city in and the county seat of Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,008 at the 2000 census. As of 2009, the city population was estimated at 17,019....

 but raised in Roswell, New Mexico

Roswell, New Mexico

Roswell is a city in and the county seat of Chaves County in the southeastern quarter of the state of New Mexico, United States. The population was 48,366 at the 2010 census. It is a center for irrigation farming, dairying, ranching, manufacturing, distribution, and petroleum production. It is also...

. He lived in Aurora, Colorado

Aurora, Colorado

City of Aurora is a Home Rule Municipality spanning Arapahoe, Adams, and Douglas counties in Colorado. Aurora is an eastern suburb of the Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area . The city is the third most populous city in the Colorado and the 56th most populous city in the...

 until March 14, 2000 when he died of Pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer refers to a malignant neoplasm of the pancreas. The most common type of pancreatic cancer, accounting for 95% of these tumors is adenocarcinoma, which arises within the exocrine component of the pancreas. A minority arises from the islet cells and is classified as a...

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