The Green Bay Packers have struck at the trade deadline, moving veteran defensive end Preston Smith to Pittsburgh
The Green Bay Packers have made a move at the trade deadline.
No, they have not added anyone like Marshon Lattimore or another pass rusher.
Instead, they've moved on from one of their longtime veterans.
Preston Smith, who has been with the team since the 2019 spending spree that saw Smith sign with the team along with Za'Darius Smith, Billy Turner, and Adrian Amos, has reportedly been traded to Pittsburgh.
The news was first reported by NFL Network's Tom Pellissero.
The surprise comes in that the Packers are 6-3, and usually teams with a record, and making a playoff push are adding rather than trying to subtract.
A source did note, however, that Smith's playing time was on the way down, and he's been the subject of trade speculation for weeks.
Smith played fewer snaps in Sunday's 24-14 loss to the Detroit Lions than Lukas Van Ness or Kingsley Enagbare.
Arron Mosby also saw his first snaps of the season on defense, helping Rashan Gary sack Jared Goff.
Compensation for the trade was a 2025 seventh-round pick according to Matt Schneidman of The Athletic.
Smith's time in Green Bay will go down as a success.
He was a workhorse in Green Bay, which is something that looked to be the case again early in the season.
He played 80 percent of snaps in 2022 and 84 percent in 2019 during his first season with the team.
He was one of the best players on the team during the renaissance season that was Matt LaFleur's first year in Green Bay.
The last four games, however, Smith has been noticeably absent from the stat sheet.
He has zero sacks, and only two pressures in that timeframe.
If the Packers do not make another move before the trade deadline at 3 PM Central time, they'll roll through the rest of the season with more snaps for Lukas Van Ness, Kingsley Enagbare, Arron Mosby, and Brenton Cox Jr. alongside Rashan Gary
