"I had "Sr" on the back of my jersey because we have a 4-year-old, Steve Smith Jr. This will be the only time that he's able to kind of remember what dad used to do," Smith said. "It's a chapter that's closed, but in the next chapter, a little piece gives him an opportunity to experience what his three siblings have experienced. My youngest knows nothing about daddy and football.

"Mr. Tepper has given me the opportunity to connect those dots, to complete that sentence."

At some point, Steve Smith Jr. will probably go to YouTube and watch highlights of his dad in amazement. He'll see the game-breaking explosiveness, the stunning power, the strong hands. He'll also see that relentless intensity – Smith's real trademark.

But away from the field, Smith tries to keep those emotions in check.

Thinking about seeing his name on the stadium facade and sharing that moment with his kids? There's no way the emotions can stay bottled up.

"It's hard to think about it because of the emotion around it. So I try not to think about it too much," Smith said. "People think with the way I played that I am an emotional person, but that part of me I try not to display a lot.

"But this hit me in the heart. It hit me between the eyes a little bit. It was something I really wasn't anticipating."