According to the NFL’s transaction wire, the Green Bay Packers worked out defensive lineman Mazi Smith on Monday. Smith is a former first-round pick who was taken 26th overall by the Dallas Cowboys back in the 2023 draft and has played in 43 games (20 starts) in the NFL, including one game for the Miami Dolphins this season.
Smith was displaced from his starting nose tackle role in Dallas when the Cowboys traded for former Packer Kenny Clark in the Micah Parsons trade. In November of 2025, he was sent
to the New York Jets in Dallas’ trade for defensive lineman Quinnen Williams. Last offseason, the Jets turned down Smith’s fifth-year option and released him at the cutdown deadline.
Initially, Smith signed with the Dolphins’ practice squad for the 2026 season, but he was released last week by Miami.
Notably, the Packers are particularly thin at the defensive line position right now, despite entering the regular season with plenty of bodies at the position. Nazir Stackhouse was claimed off waivers by the Tennessee Titans at the cutdown deadline. Jaden Crumedy, the Packers’ first practice squad lineman, was poached by the Houston Texans in-season. On top of that, Javon Hargrave, Jonathan Ford and Warren Brinson are all already on the team’s injured reserve list going into Week 7. The only positive news on the defensive line is that Jordon Riley, who tore his Achilles in 2025, is already practicing with Green Bay — despite still being a member of the physically unable to perform list.
Right now, the Packers have a 51-man active roster, even after running back Josh Jacobs was activated from the commisioner exempt list on Monday. They have two roster spots to play with. Their 17-man practice squad is full, though, meaning that if Smith is signed to the team’s practice squad, a corresponding roster most will need to be made — either the promotion of a practice squadder to the active roster or a straight release of a practice squadder.
Currently, the team only has four interior defensive linemen on the active roster — Karl Brooks, Devonte Wyatt, Chris McClellan and Anthony Campbell — despite playing a 3-4 base defense. The practice squad has one interior defensive lineman, David Blay Jr., who was signed by the team in Week 4 following Crumedy’s poaching and a short stint for Eric Johnson II.
Each of the Packers’ interior defensive linemen played at least 30 snaps for Green Bay against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football, even though Campbell had only played nine total career NFL snaps going into the game. McClellan took over as the starting nose tackle in 3-4 looks (which, to be fair, were limited), a role that was previously filled by Ford.
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Update: The team is planning on signing Smith to the practice squad, according to ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. The Packers will need to make a corresponding roster move, as the 17-man unit is already full.
