Former NFL star wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. set the record straight: He is not controversial.
Smith, 47, said he is perceived as controversial for his takes, but all of them are rooted in what he believes.
"I don't think I'm controversial. I just see and say what I see. And I'm not interested in being convinced when I know what it's supposed to look like," Smith said during a recent appearance on OutKick’s "Don’t @ Me with Dan Dakich."
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Former player Steve Smith Sr. looks on prior to the NFC Wild Card playoff game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C., on Jan. 10, 2026. (Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
Smith, who is now at ESPN as a football analyst, said he used to be concerned with blowback. Now he is at the point where he holds himself accountable for his takes.
"Today I'm at the place where I really try to work on not being lazy. And this is me. This is my worst. Sometimes if I say a guy sucks, that's me being lazy. Just flat out. I call myself out. That's just being flat," Smith, who spoke on behalf of Forzet, said.
"Now what I have been working on that I do care about is I now want to make sure if I am saying something that you disagree, you can have your opinion, but don't discredit 1. my resume, 2. my work and 3. all the other things that I've done to show you that just because you don't like this take doesn't mean that I have no idea what I'm talking about."
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Former Panthers wide receiver and commentator Steve Smith Sr. stands before the game between the Carolina Panthers and Baltimore Ravens at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C., on Aug. 21, 2021. (USA TODAY Sports)
Smith made headlines in 2023 when he teed off on then-Denver Broncos wide receiver Jerry Jeudy. The five-time Pro Bowl receiver said that Jeudy was a "JAG," which stands for "just a guy."
Smith, who was an NFL Network analyst at the time, approached Jeudy before the game to apologize. Jeudy then cursed him out, and Smith went on air and doubled down on his take that Jeudy was just a guy and advised general managers not to trade for him in a viral clip.
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Carolina Panthers former receiver Steve Smith Sr. appears on the NFL Network set at the Super Bowl LX media center at the Moscone Center in San Francisco on Feb. 4, 2026. (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
The two-time First-team All-Pro receiver was known for talking a lot of trash on the field during his 16-year career. Smith spent 13 seasons with the Carolina Panthers and three with the Baltimore Ravens.
In 219 games, he had 1,031 receptions for 14,731 yards and 81 touchdowns.
Ryan Canfield is a digital production assistant for Fox News Digital.