The Green Bay Packers made one move at the NFL trade deadline on Tuesday. They traded edger rusher Preston Smith to the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for a seventh-round draft pick in 2025. The deal means the Packers didn’t add a player at the deadline in their quest to contend for a Super Bowl this season. Instead, they traded away a veteran starter. Here is a look at the benefits and risks of the Packers trade of Preston Smith.
The Benefits and Risks of the Packers Trade of Preston Smith: Smith’s Tenure as a Packer
GM Brian Gutekunst signed Preston Smith as an unrestricted free agent before the 2019 season. He was part of the team’s largest free agent class in recent memory along with Adrian Amos, Billy Turner, and Za’Darius Smith. All four of those players became starters and important contributors to the Packers success in the following seasons.
Preston Smith recorded a career-high 12 sacks in his first season in Green Bay. He proved to be remarkably durable and consistent during his time with the team. While he never earned Pro Bowl honors, Smith rarely missed games and provided the team with reliable pressure off the edge. The former Mississippi State star also provided veteran leadership for a young Green Bay team, especially over the last two seasons.
Now, Smith will head to Pittsburgh to play for the 6-2 Steelers, another contending team with a chance to win the Super Bowl.
The Benefits of the Trade
The biggest benefit of the trade is salary cap related. The odds of Smith remaining in Green Bay in 2025 were slim. He is scheduled to have a cap hit of $13.4 million. Smith will turn 32 later this month and his production this season of 2.5 sacks in nine games would not justify such a large cap hit.
If the Packers released Smith during the coming offseason, there would have been a substantial dead cap hit. The Pack saved $2.02 million this season, $7.62 million in 2025, $18.21 million in 2026, and $1.67 million in 2027 by making this trade.
The Packers also get back the seventh-round pick they traded away in the deal for Malik Willis back in August. Gutekunst has made some good additions in the seventh round of the draft in recent seasons, and he has the potential to add another useful player this year with the pick the Packers just added.
The Benefits and Risks of the Packers Trade of Preston Smith: The Risks
The biggest risk associated with this trade is the lack of proven depth at edge rusher. Rashan Gary will remain the starter on one side with Lukas Van Ness and Kingsley Enagbare the two candidates most likely to see more playing time.
Van Ness is a former first round pick who has just one sack this season. The Packers were hoping Van Ness would take a step forward this season, but his progress has been disappointing thus far.
Enagbare has 1.5 sacks this season and must be prepared for a larger role. The Packers also have Arron Mosby, who recorded a half sack last week against Detroit and had an outstanding preseason. Brenton Cox, Jr., is also more likely to be active on game day and see some action on defense after Smith’s departure.
The uncertainty is whether these players can step up and replace Smith’s productivity. The team may also miss his leadership. This is still a young roster, and Smith was one of the few veterans over 30 who had been through the NFL wars.
Now, the Packers are moving forward. The short-term risks will hopefully be outweighed by the long-term benefits. Edge rusher will become a bigger need next offseason. This would have likely have been the case anyway if they had to cut Smith next offseason.
Preston Smith was a solid contributor during his five-and-a-half seasons with the Packers. Now, younger players will have to pick up the slack as the Packers pursue their Super Bowl aspirations this season.
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