The Detroit Lions appear to have officially moved on from the idea of a reunion with former pass rusher Za’Darius Smith.
During a Wednesday appearance on 97.1 The Ticket’s Costa and Jansen, Lions coach Dan Campbell discussed the team’s approach to addressing edge rusher depth and explained why they didn’t bring Smith back.
“We’re good right now, we are pretty good here,” Campbell said. “We got (Marcus) Davenport, we got good depth. I like what we got interior too. We got a lot of flexibility, and we’re sitting pretty good right now. So we’re ready to go.”
Both Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes have praised Davenport after a strong training camp showing, and the team clearly believes he can be a difference-maker opposite Aidan Hutchinson.
Still, with Davenport limited to just six games over the past two seasons due to injuries, questions lingered about his long-term durability. That led to speculation Detroit might look to bring back Smith as part of the rotation, pairing him with Hutchinson for what could have been a dangerous duo off the edge.
Holmes struck a different tone last week, saying communication with Smith had cooled.
While he didn’t rule anything out, he emphasized that the team’s lone open roster spot wasn’t set aside for the veteran. “You guys know me, anything is a possibility at any point,” Holmes said. “I don’t know what’s going to happen, but the one open roster spot, we just have one open spot. It’s not for a specific player; it’s for the player that makes the most sense for us, whoever that player may be.”
He later added “not recently” when asked if there had been active talks with Smith.
The Lions acquired Smith from the Cleveland Browns ahead of last year’s trade deadline, and he proved to be a solid addition. He recorded 12 tackles, including three for loss, along with 10 quarterback hits, four sacks and one pass defended in eight games with Detroit.
But the veteran pass rusher became a cap casualty in the offseason, leading to his release as part of a cost-cutting move.
Heading into Week 1 against the Packers, the Lions’ edge rusher rotation will consist of Hutchinson and Davenport as starters, with Al-Quadin Muhammad and Tyrus Wheat -- claimed off waivers from the Dallas Cowboys -- providing depth.
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