Veteran edge rusher Za’Darius Smith is looking for a new home in 2025 after he was cut loose by the Detroit Lions following half of a season with the franchise.
Smith was acquired by Detroit at the NFL trade deadline last year as a solution to help fill the void left by Aidan Hutchinson’s injury. The 32-year-old went on to tally four sacks over eight games and finished the campaign with nine in total when you include his five sacks over nine contests with the Cleveland Browns.
Due to the around $11 million he was owed, the Lions decided to release the veteran, leaving him free to sign with any team. For The Win’s Christian D’Andrea thinks Smith will eventually land with a familiar team: the Baltimore Ravens.
“Yep, it’s time for another homecoming. Baltimore needs additional help in the pass rush, where Kyle Van Noy probably can’t be counted on for another 12.5 sacks and David Ojabo has been a limited factor thanks in part to the torn Achilles suffered at his pro day three years ago,” he wrote. “Smith’s 14.9 percent pressure rate is on par with what he put up his final season in Baltimore (14.8) and he remains a valuable edge presence who can rotate along a depth chart with Van Noy and Odafe Oweh.”
Ravens fans are already quite familiar with Smith, who spent the first four years of his career in Baltimore after being a fourth-round pick of the team in 2015. While Smith is getting up there in age, he showed he still has gas left in the tank.
The Ravens actually had one of the best pass-rushes in the NFL last season, with the team finishing with 54 sacks, the second-most in the league.
However, the Ravens will be depending on soon-to-be 34-year-old Kyle Van Noy and 2024 breakout star Odafe Oweh to replicate that success. Baltimore would be wise to add more help to a group upfront that also features Nnamdi Madubuike.
One potential problem with acquiring Smith is price. Baltimore has just $13 million in cap space currently and still has some significant needs to fill. Smith will likely be looking for a contract that pays him around $12 million annually.
After cutting his teeth with Bleacher Report, Mike Moraitis has covered the Los Angeles Rams and Tennessee Titans for FanSided, and the Titans and New York Giants for USA TODAY Sports Media Group. On top of his duties with Sporting News, Mike is the managing editor and lead writer for Titans Wire.
