Remember Mazi Smith, the Michigan defensive tackle drafted 26th overall in 2023? Well, no, most people probably don't, apart from draft nerds and Dallas Cowboys fans.
Smith is the definition of a draft bust, but the Green Bay Packers are desperate enough for defensive line depth that they signed him to the practice squad after being released by the Miami Dolphins, A.K.A. the Green Bay South, earlier this month.
That's not a promising sign, clearly. Beggars can't be choosers, though, and the Packers just played a game with only four active DTs. Three more are on injured reserve: Warren Brinson, Javon Hargrave, and Jonathan Ford.
Green Bay will hope that Smith, originally from the same defense that drafted Micah Parsons, can step up if needed.
Mazi Smith flier gives Packers emergency depth on decimated defensive line
Whereas Parsons was clearly a jackpot success two drafts before, Smith was a big ole swing and a miss. While the two actually started alongside each other in 2024, Smith followed Parsons out the door not long after and was traded to the New York Jets midway through the 2025 season.
New York released Smith during roster cutdowns, and the Dolphins signed him to the practice squad before the season. About a week after his elevation to the active roster, Smith was waived. If the rebuilding Dolphins aren't moved by his upside, then what does that say?
Nothing good, obviously. It's telling that, counting running back Josh Jacobs, the Packers only have 51 players on the 53-man roster and chose to stash Smith on the practice squad, where any other team could sign him — if they wanted.
But Green Bay isn't so much concerned with future promise as with immediate aid. They probably don't want Campbell having to play 32 defensive snaps, as he did against Dallas, every week. Chris McClellan and Devonte Wyatt also set season-highs.
Evidently Green Bay likes Smith at least as much, and probably more, than rookie David Blay Jr., the defensive tackle on their own practice squad. Smith has what Blay does not, which is experience. He started all 17 games for Dallas in 2024, recording 41 tackles, four tackles for loss, and one sack.
At 6-foot-3 and 336 pounds, he also has the bulk that, on the Packers' active roster, only Ford could boast. That doesn't mean he'll see the field, or even be called up from the practice squad, but it does create an opportunity for playing time.
While Smith isn't much of a pass rusher, he can in theory help against the run. The problem is that, now in Year 4, he has yet to put potential into practice.
At the end of the day, the Packers defensive front needs any help it can get. Maybe a more mature Smith can pick up a thing or two from being back in the same building as Parsons.
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