NFL Trade Rumors
The well-traveled DE Za’Darius Smith hits free agency once more. Originally a fourth-round pick of the Ravens, he played out his rookie contract in Baltimore before signing a free-agent deal with the Packers in 2019. It was in Green Bay where he truly broke out, as he became a yearly double-digit sack monster before the Browns signed him to play next to Myles Garrett.
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The Lions traded for Smith last season after their own star pass rusher, Aidan Hutchinson, suffered a season-ending leg injury. With the Browns nowhere close to contention, they were happy to part with Smith in exchange for some future assets. Smith has been connected to the Lions again this offseason, though evidently that hasn’t gone anywhere. His free agent market has been surprisingly quiet.
Though Smith will turn 33 around the start of the season, that hasn’t affected his play at all. He’s coming off a nine-sack, 35-tackle season with the Browns and Lions. PFF graded him out at 71.7, good for 31st at the position. In 2022 and 2023, he had PFF grades of 85.9 and 86.8, respectively. He combined for 15 sacks during that span as one of the best secondary pass rushers in the league.
Smith isn’t the type to anchor a top-flight pass rush on his own. But if a team already has a star who needs a running mate, or if a team needs a great option to factor into a rotation, Smith is as good as they come.
Smith, 32, is a former fourth-round pick of the Ravens back in 2015. He played out the final year of his four-year rookie contract before agreeing to a four-year, $66 million contract with the Packers in 2019.
Smith had one year remaining on his contract and was set to make a base salary of $14,500,000 for the 2021 season when the Packers released him.
The Ravens reached an agreement with Smith on a four-year deal worth $35 million, but he opted to back out of the deal and sign a three-year, $42 million contract with the Vikings. From there, the Vikings traded Smith to the Browns, and he agreed to a two-year, $23.5 million contract with Cleveland.
The Browns traded Smith to the Lions along with a 2026 seventh-round pick in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 sixth-round pick. Detroit released him before the final year of his deal.
In 2024, Smith appeared in 17 games for the Lions and the Browns and recorded 35 tackles and nine sacks in 16 starts.
We have him included in our Top 100 Available NFL Free Agents list.
There have been rumblings that the Lions are interested in bringing Smith back, but so far that hasn’t materialized. On paper, it makes a lot of sense. When Hutchinson went down with that injury, it was immediately apparent Detroit didn’t have anyone else on the roster who could generate consistent pressure on the quarterback. The trade for...
