GREEN BAY, Wis. — With a barrage of injuries hitting the defensive tackle room, the Green Bay Packers are outsourcing for some aid.
That’s going to come in the form of Mazi Smith, a former first-round pick of the Dallas Cowboys. A No. 26 overall selection in the spring of 2023, Smith was in Green Bay for a workout on Monday. The Packers’ coaching staff must’ve liked what they saw, because they’re signing the 25-year-old to the practice squad.
The Packers only have four healthy bodies at defensive tackle on their 53-man roster, but that’s putting it nicely. Devonte Wyatt has routinely been listed on the injury report through the first six weeks of the season, but that’s more of a result of the Packers managing his practice workload following last year’s season-ending lower-leg injury. Anthony Campbell, who missed the last three games with an ankle injury, played 31 snaps in his return Sunday night against the Cowboys. Before that, he had just nine regular-season snaps on his professional resume.
Karl Brooks and Chris McClellan make up the rest of the position group, with David Blay Jr. on the practice squad. Despite the thin numbers, the Packers didn’t elevate Blay for Sunday’s game.
Once perceived to be the deepest position on the roster, the Packers are now scrambling for answers—and numbers—at defensive tackle. Javon Hargrave was placed on injured reserve following a season-ending Achilles tear in the Oct. 11 win over the Chicago Bears, joining Warren Brinson and Jonathan Ford. Brinson, who was placed on the list with a calf injury, has to miss one more game before he’s eligible to be activated. Ford just joined the list on Friday with a calf injury of his own.
The Packers also have Jordon Riley on the physically unable to perform (PUP), but he only has a week of practice under his belt after returning on Oct. 14. Like Hargrave, Riley tore his Achilles last season.
Smith has 43 games’ worth of experience that should expedite the process of getting him up to speed. The Packers are in Detroit this weekend for their first meeting with the Lions this season. That could serve as extra motivation for Smith, a native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, and a former Wolverine.
After appearing in 34 games across his first two seasons in the league, Smith fell out of favor with defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus in 2025. Ironically, it was the trade with the Packers the previous summer that pushed Smith out of the lineup. The Cowboys acquired Kenny Clark and a pair of first-round picks in exchange for Micah Parsons, who will now be teammates with Smith in Green Bay. The Cowboys leaned on the addition of Clark, as well as the contributions of Jay Toia and Solomon Thomas, before sending Smith to the trade block.
He was flipped to the New York Jets—along with second and first-round picks—for Quinnen Williams, but nothing would come of his tenure in the Big Apple. He played just 54 defensive snaps across three games before the Jets decided not to exercise his fifth-year option, ultimately leading to his release during cut-downs this past summer.
Smith joined the Miami Dolphins’ practice squad, but appeared in just one game before being released last week.
During his time in Dallas, Smith played for a different defensive coordinator each season: Dan Quinn in 2023, Mike Zimmer in 2024, and Eberflus in 2025. With each different name at the helm came a new set of expectations for Smith, whose weight fluctuated each year. The Cowboys deployed him at various positions along the defensive line, but he was asked to either lose weight or gain it heading into each season.
Being tasked with mastering a new scheme every offseason is one thing, but evolving body composition is an entirely different beast that kept Smith from ever truly settling at one position.
Currently, Smith is 6’3” and 337 pounds, making him the ideal frame for a nose tackle. He had a productive junior and senior seasons at Michigan, but his draft pedigree has yet to translate to the league.
The Packers haven’t shied away from taking swings on former first-round picks who haven’t panned out in the past—and they shouldn’t. A fresh environment and a new system that caters to a particular player’s strengths could catapult them toward greater horizons and rejuvenate a career that, at one point, appeared stagnant.
Zachary Jacobson is the author of The Packer Dispatch. He is entering his 12th season covering the Green Bay Packers after spending seven as the Editor-in-Chief of Packer Report. He is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America. Follow him on Twitter @zachjacobson or contact him via email at itszachariahj@gmail.com.