Za’Darius Smith Teases NFC North Return
Former Vikings edge rusher Za’Darius Smith, currently contracted to pressure the passer with the Cleveland Browns, spoke about a potential trade with the trade deadline nearing.
Smith’s name has been brought up a few times as a recommendation for some of the pass-rush needy buyers at the trade deadline, the main one being the Detroit Lions, who just lost superstar rusher Aidan Hutchinson, likely for the year when he collided legs with teammate Alim McNeil and fractured his tibia and fibula.
Za’Darius Smith’s Career Path
A marriage with Detroit would be Smith’s third venture in the NFC North. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens, where he spent the first four seasons of his career, before signing a 4-year/$66 million deal with the Green Bay Packers. The Pack released him in the 2022 offseason to free up some cap space, and Smith drove across the Wisconsin-Minnesota border to sign a 3-year/$42 million deal with the Vikings.
He had only played through one year of that deal before suddenly bidding goodbye to Minnesota on Instagram in the 2023 offseason and subsequently being traded to the Cleveland Browns along with 2025 sixth and seventh picks in exchange for two 2025 fifth-round picks.
Za’Darius Smith Would “Like” Playing For The Detroit Lions
Anyone would “like” going from a Deshaun Watson-led 1-5 team to a Super Bowl favorite Lions team, but there’s a deeper reason for Smith in his own words.
The pass rusher explained:
..but if I were to go to Detroit, I would like it, because I get to play Green Bay twice a year and the Vikings twice a year. So yeah, that’ll be big...I’m staying positive, but now that you say that, it might be a good look, a good feel for me.
Cleveland Browns EDGE Za’Darius Smith
Playing his former Vikings and Packers seems to be enough to sell Smith on playing for Detroit before you even factor in that the Lions are 4-1 and are looking very likely to be making noise late into January.
Smith stated before speaking about his potential desire to be transacted to Detroit that it’s not his decision and that he would rather “upstairs” be asked about whether or not they are looking to move him.
The 32-year-old veteran is having a fine year. He has posted 16 tackles, three sacks, and ten total pressures, accompanied by a 67.8 overall grade, a 66.4 run defense grade, and a 64.6 pass rush grade from Pro Football Focus.
For a team heavily lacking in pass rush ability without Aidan Hutchinson, and mind you, has already lost Marcus Davenport for the year (shocker!), a trade for a solid rusher like Smith, who is also looking for a ring as we draw near to the end of his career, would be a mutually beneficial move for all involved. A rebuilding Browns team could get off his contract, and the Lions and Smith would journey off into the NFC in an attempt to hoist the Lombardi.
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