Smith’s brief Steelers tenure comes to a close. The team traded for the then-disgruntled Packer in Week 10, when Smith made clear he felt out of sorts in the Packers’ newly installed 4-3 defensive scheme. The 32-year-old pass rusher notched 4.5 NFL sacks in 2024 and can likely still contribute as a rotational player elsewhere in 2025. The move saves the Steelers $27.5 million over the next two seasons.

Smith, who had eight or more sacks in each of the 2021-2023 seasons, had seen his snaps decline recently as Kingsley Enagbare and Lukas Van Ness grew into bigger roles. The 31-year-old is a nice pick up for the Steelers given the lack of pass-rushing depth they had behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith. the Steelers will take on Smith’s contract and the Packers will take on $5 million in dead money on the 2025 cap to make the deal happen.

Smith was scheduled to count $19.7 million against the cap. This extension likely pushes a large chunk of that money into the future, giving the Packers some much-needed cap savings. It also keeps one of their most important defenders in the fold for the foreseeable future. Smith recorded nine sacks last season and has 25 in three years with the Packers. 

Smith was a cut candidate after a 4.0-sack 2020 but will instead take a pay cut to remain in Green Bay. He'll collect $8 million in salary this season with $4.4 million available in incentives surrounding his sack totals. Smith and Za'Darius Smith provide a high-ceiling edge presence for the Packers who just hired a new defensive coordinator.