Mazi Smith did not travel with the Cowboys to Las Vegas ahead of Saturday’s preseason game against the Raiders, the franchise announced. He suffered an allergic reaction Friday afternoon at training camp.
The Cowboys confirmed Smith received treatment and will receive further evaluation on Saturday ahead of the 9 p.m. CT kickoff at Allegiant Stadium. As for what his status will be, that update will come later in the day, the team said.
“DT Mazi Smith experienced an allergic reaction this afternoon at training camp that resulted in him not being able to travel with the team to Las Vegas,” the Cowboys said in a statement. “He has received treatment and will be reevaluated in the morning with his game status updated accordingly following that.”
Smith is preparing for his second NFL season after the Cowboys selected him in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft out of Michigan. He appeared in 17 games last season, including three starts, and totaled 13 tackles and a sack during that time.
As for what’s next for Smith’s development in Dallas, new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer has a plan. He’s going to move from the 3-technique position and play more of the blocks in the new scheme.
“He lost a lot of weight when he got here,” Zimmer said. “He was trying to be an attacking 3-technique to get up the field.”
“We’re gonna probably play blocks a little bit more, and try not to get reached so linebackers know where they’re supposed to fit — so forth and so on. That’s the biggest thing. … Yeah, it’s what he did in college.”
As for how Smith can bounce back from his quiet rookie season, Zimmer said it starts with his stance. From there, it’s about putting everything together to get his production back to what it was at Michigan.
“Obviously, he was a high draft pick,” Zimmer said. “I heard that he kinda struggled last year, so we’re gonna start with the basics: get him in a good stance, get him using his hands the right way, getting his footwork the right way and then go from there.
“I talked to him yesterday and asked him what weight he felt comfortable at, so we’ve gotta get him to that point first and then get his strength back, and then we’ll let him go out here on the field. We anticipate he’s gonna be a good player like he was in college, and that’s how we have to go.”
