Gary Smith, a longtime New York Jets scout, has died. He was 72.
“Gary was a hard-working scout who loved his job and loved the Jets,” said Terry Bradway, who served as Jets GM from 2001-05, per Eric Allen of the Jets official website. “He had a really good background, a former player and coach who carried his Midwestern values and was very fun to be around.
Like many scouts, Smith was known as a road warrior. According to Allen, Smith once estimated that he spent 300 days a year on the road in the 20 years he spent scouting in the NFL.