Trading Preston Smith on deadline day helps the Green Bay Packers financially, and general manager Brian Gutekunst deserves credit for dumping his salary on the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Smith trade itself isn't the problem and was a smart piece of business. What may come back to haunt the Packers was their inability to add a pass-rusher at the NFL trade deadline. With or without Smith, Green Bay needed to improve its consistency at getting after opposing quarterbacks, and it's not like opportunities weren't there.
The New York Giants' rumored asking price for edge-rusher Azeez Ojulari—a late fourth or early fifth—presented the perfect opportunity for the Packers to add talent to the front seven.
Their failure to make a move may hurt them down the stretch, regardless of whether they retained Smith. Moving on from the veteran makes sense. The lack of acquisitions is harder to justify.
Updated depth chart leaves Packers thin after Preston Smith trade
Before you make any jokes about Joe Barry using Smith as a cornerback (the good ol' days), here is the Packers' updated defensive end depth chart:
Starters | Second Team | Third Team |
|---|---|---|
Rashan Gary | Kingsley Enagbare | Aaron Mosby |
Lukas Van Ness | Brenton Cox Jr. |
The Packers need Lukas Van Ness more than ever. The 13th overall pick in 2023 has made a concerning start to his second campaign, with only six pressures and one sack through the opening nine games, per PFF. Defensive tackle T.J. Slaton has two more pressures on 42 fewer snaps.
If there's room for optimism, it's that Van Ness has never started an NFL game. The second-year pro will presumably land the starting nod ahead of Kingsley Enagbare, but even if not, Smith's departure opens up a full-time role on defense, something the Iowa product has yet to see.
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Whether that translates into more pressures and sacks remains to be seen, but it's not like Smith was getting consistent production. The Packers moved on from a veteran they were likely going to release in the offseason, created future cap space, and netted a draft pick.
The question is whether they were right to stick with the current group rather than aggressively pursuing a pass-rusher before the trade deadline. Ojulari has twice as many sacks as any Packers player despite only starting four games. He could've filled the starting position opposite Rashan Gary.
Instead, Van Ness must begin to show signs of becoming the player the Packers thought they were getting after selecting him 13th overall. His development could determine how far this team can go in January.