CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Salisbury-native Chris Smith is the newest Carolina Panther, but he said he almost stopped playing football altogether after tragically losing his girlfriend Petara Cordero last September.
Smith’s brute strength as a football player pales in comparison to his strength as a person and as a father.
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“You gotta enjoy life because you never know when your last day, just like in football, you never know when it’s your last play,” Smith said.
Cordero died just weeks after giving birth to their daughter, Haven. She was hit and killed on the side of a Cleveland interstate when the car she and Smith were in got a flat tire.
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Smith said they were talking about their daughter Haven, their family and taking trips together. He said it was the hardest thing he’s ever been through.
“When somebody dies that’s close to you it’s like ‘Nah, that didn’t happen. Nah Nah, that can’t be,'” Smith said. “But the hardest part is dealing with that new reality or that new normal.”
Smith said despite what happened, his faith is still strong -- his mother is a pastor and his father is a deacon. He believes Petara played a part in him signing with the Panthers.
“With football and life, it’s kind of the same thing. When you face adversity, you’ve got to find out to overcome it,” Smith said. “She [Petara] used to always hate when I used to fly back to Cleveland and stuff like that, especially with my daughter being here and my family. She most definitely had a hand in that.”
Even though Haven will never know her mother, she sees her daily and Smith sees Petara in Haven, who is now six months old.
“Like we laid her down last night and she was just, she looked around. She looks at the pictures and she just turns over to the side when she goes to sleep,” Smith said.
Smith also said he finds comfort and strength in a tattoo he and Petara shared, a strength that can’t be measured on the football field.
“When it’s hard or if I get kind of down because I’m missing her, I always look at that and say ‘Stay Strong,’” Smith said. “We gotta enjoy life. We gotta celebrate her legacy in everything so that’s one thing about it. I’m gonna try to do that in each aspect.”
Smith recently signed with Emergency Safety Solutions, which is a company that he will work with to ensure every car has hazard lights. Smith will be their spokesperson and does not want anyone to go through the loss he has.
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Smith is a graduate from West Rowan High School and is entering his seventh year in the league. The former fifth-round pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars has experienced it all -- he’s been cut, played on the practice squad, traded and been a starter.
He then joined a Cleveland Browns team that was 0-16. Upon joining a Panthers team that is currently rebuilding, he said, “Bring it on.”
“We have a lot of talent on this team, you know with the Panthers,” Smith said. “Cam Newton is a Hall of Fame quarterback to me. When you see him on film and he’s healthy, so I feel like we’re way ahead of when I first came to the Browns so I feel like you can’t just talk Super Bowl yet. You gotta work and win each day up to that.”
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