Torrey Smith is no stranger to controversy or greatness, having played the past four seasons with the Baltimore Ravens.
There was Ray Lewis. And Ray Rice. And a Ravens Lombardi trophy that came at the expense of the San Francisco 49ers.
So there is a familiar feeling for the new Niners receiver in the wake of the team cutting ties with pass-rushing linebacker Aldon Smith after his fifth arrest on Friday.
"Aldon's one of the best football players I've ever been around, and I've been around some Hall of Famers, you know, in Baltimore," Torrey Smith said Saturday. "His talent, no one can deny that. I just hope he gets everything together and maybe he gets another chance.
"We all have problems. Everyone might not know about our problems, but we all have something that we have to deal with and, unfortunately, he's handling his a little bit differently than you would think, or you would like to have happened. No one's perfect and I hope he gets all the help that he needs. And, I think, the best thing of it all is that he has the support needed here, even though he's no longer a member of the team."
The 49ers have said they plan on helping Aldon Smith.
In Baltimore, the Rice storyline dominated the season after video surfaced of the running back punching and knocking out his then-fiancée, now wife. But Torrey Smith said the team was able to focus on football to get past the distraction with Rice suspended.
"It starts at the top," Torrey Smith said. "You don't give it attention ... when you're on that field, we're all working towards one thing, and when you leave, we all have to deal with our problems separately or you can get help, which a lot of us probably should do a little more -- reach out and get more help.
"But when you're in practice, you're not worried about what's going on outside of that ... people that have experienced leaders, they know how to handle it well."
Torrey Smith was brought to Santa Clara to help with the Niners' vertical game, quarterback Colin Kaepernick's development in particular. Smith, per Pro Football Focus, has 51 receptions on targets of at least 20 yards since his rookie season of 2011, including the postseason, and has 44 catches of at least 25 yards in his career.
Smith's career average of 16.9 yards per catch is a Ravens record.