After rostering the likes of Melvin Ingram and Markus Golden as key OLB backups in recent years, the Steelers now have Preston Smith in that role. They traded a seventh-round pick to the Packers for the proven veteran, capping a two-trade day.
At 6-3, the Packers were not exactly in a seller’s position. But Smith had seen his playing time decline in Jeff Hafley‘s defense. As it turns out, Smith said (via The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo) he approached the Packers with a trade request — one aimed at finding his way back to a 3-4 defense. After more than 10 years in a 3-4 scheme, Green Bay converted to a 4-3 base alignment under Hafley this offseason.
While base schemes do not matter on the level they once did due to the rise of sub-packages, they do still affect certain players. Edge rushers are among them, and Smith had spent his career as a 3-4 OLB — both in Green Bay and Washington. He will head to a Steelers team that has long used this defensive setup, being set to play a key rotational role behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith.
Smith, who will turn 32 next week, had played six seasons with the Packers. The former Washington draftee joined fellow deadline trade piece Za’Darius Smith in signing with the Pack in 2019, and the Smiths played central roles in Green Bay booking three straight playoff byes from 2019-21. Preston Smith outlasted Za’Darius, whom the Packers cut in 2022. That came as the team re-signed Preston to a four-year, $52.5MM deal. That contract runs through the 2026 season.
Preston Smith started every Packers game this season, which still makes it a bit surprising the team signed off on this swap. The 10th-year edge rusher — made a defensive end under Hafley — had played 54% of Green Bay’s defensive snaps; that rate is down from his previous seasons with the team. Smith played 71% of the Pack’s defensive snaps in their opener and eclipsed 60% in two of the team’s next three games, but he dipped below 45% in two of the previous three Green Bay contests.
For the season, Smith has 2.5 sacks and just four QB hits. Prior to this year, the ex-second-round pick had given the Packers reliable work on the edge. He tallied between eight and nine sacks between the 2021 and ’23 seasons and notched 12 during his first Packers slate. He will take over the role the Steelers had hoped Golden would play again, but Golden changed those plans by retiring shortly after re-signing in August. Smith has been a more consistent player than Golden, and coupled with Nick Herbig — who is recovering from injury but still on Pittsburgh’s active roster — the recent import should be positioned to make an impact for a suddenly deep OLB corps.
The Packers have Lukas Van Ness seemingly earmarked to take over alongside Rashan Gary. Thanks to the former’s fifth-year option, the Packers can keep both on their current contracts through 2027. Van Ness has played 41% of Green Bay’s defensive snaps this season, though the 2023 first-rounder has just one sack and two QB hits. Kingsley Enagbare will also be positioned to see more playing time, though it is interesting the Packers made this move considering their record and that Gary has not quite recaptured his form. No Packer rusher enters Week 10 with more than three sacks.