Getty
Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Mazi Smith.
If you have been following the Dallas Cowboys even somewhat closely over the last year, you know their interior defensive line has been a sieve. That problem begins with the failure of underachieving defensive tackle and former first round pick Mazi Smith.
Bleacher Report’s Matt Holder took it a step further and called Smith the Cowboys’ “Worst First Round Pick” in the last 5 years.
Smith was the No. 26 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft and signed a 4-year, $13.27 million rookie contract.
“(Offensive tackle) Tyler Guyton is threatening to take Smith’s spot here after struggling as a rookie,” Holder wrote on June 26. “However, the latter has had more time to get his feet wet in the NFL and still looks like a fish out of water. The Michigan product was drafted to help stop the run but has earned run-defense grades in the 30s from Pro Football Focus in his two seasons.”
Smith Could Be Shipped Out Via Trade
Smith seems like a prime candidate to be moved in 2025, so don’t be surprised to see his name pop up around the NFL trade deadline. The key is to find a team in desperate need of an interior run defender and before his value in a trade dips more than it already has.
“Former first-rounder Mazi Smith endured a particularly tough 2024 campaign,” PFF’s Mason Cameron wrote on May 9. “He posted an abysmal 34.7 PFF overall grade, marking his second consecutive season of earning a sub-48.0 grade. Although Dallas signed Solomon Thomas in free agency, that doesn’t profile as the answer to the Cowboys’ 30th-ranked run-defense grade (48.0).”
Smith’s PFF grade puts him among the worst defensive tackles in the NFL — 207th out of 219 eligible players at his position.
Smith Put No. 1 on The Athletic’s ‘Freaks’ List
Smith had NFL teams salivating after The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman put him at No. 1 on his annual college football “Freaks” list in 2022, saying the 6-foot-3, 337-pound University of Michigan star had a unique combination of power and agility “so rare, in fact, it’s hard to find the right superlative to begin with.”
In 2022, Smith was named All-Big Ten Conference after leading the Wolverines to the College Football Playoff semifinals with 49 tackles, 1.0 sack, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery.
NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein compared Smith to 2-time Pro Bowler Dontari Poe in his pre-draft evaluation. Zierlein also had Smith pegged as a player who some team would likely draft too early. That actually happened.
“Smith’s size and testing could give his draft slotting some juice but he’s more of a Day 2 talent with exciting upside than a plug-and-play starter,” Zierlein wrote.
The Cowboys thought enough of Smith to make him the first defensive tackle they’ve taken in the first round since they selected 3-time Super Bowl champion Russell Maryland with the No. 1 overall pick in the 1991 NFL draft.
Smith, who has 2 seasons left on a 4-year, $13.2 million contract, only had 13 tackles and 1.0 sack as a rookie in 17 games with 3 starts, then had 41 tackles, 1.0 sack and 4 TFL in 2024 as he started all 17 games.
In 2 seasons, Smith only has 3 QB hits, no forced fumbles and no fumble recoveries.
Tony Adame covers the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Commanders and Denver Broncos. A veteran sports writer and editor since 2004, his work has been featured at Stadium Talk, Yardbarker, NW Florida Daily News and Pensacola News Journal. More about Tony Adame
More Heavy on Cowboys
Loading more stories
