The New York Jets are reshaping their defensive front, and one of the most notable casualties is a player they once acquired in a major trade.
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Jets are releasing defensive tackle Mazi Smith as they move toward a 53-man roster by 6 p.m. EST on Sunday. Schefter posted on X, "Jets are releasing defensive tackle Mazi Smith, who was included in last season’s trade with Dallas for Quinnen Williams."
Smith’s exit comes after a brief stint in New York. He appeared in only three games for the Jets last season and did not do enough in training camp to earn a spot on the 53-man roster.
The move fits with the Jets’ shift to more of a 3-4 base this season, a change that puts a premium on bigger bodies up front. Aaron Glenn addressed that direction this summer, saying, "It's a big man's game -- it will always be a big man's game -- and for us to be able to add large men that have the ability that those guys have, the agility that those guys have, it only makes us better as a team," Glenn said this summer, via ESPN.
At 6-foot-3 and 337 pounds, Smith certainly had the frame New York was looking for, but the fit never quite clicked. He did not look like a match in Glenn’s system last year, and the progress the Jets wanted to see never came together in camp.
Smith, 25, arrived in New York after being part of the package Dallas sent to land Quinnen Williams. The Cowboys dealt Smith, a 2026 second-round pick and a conditional 2027 first-round pick in that trade. Dallas had selected Smith with the No. 26 pick in the 2023 draft after he starred at Michigan.
In all, Smith has played 42 games and started 20, recording 57 tackles, seven tackles for loss and two sacks.
Smith was one of several roster moves for the Jets on Saturday. The team also released quarterback Bailey Zappe, who has made several starts in the league but struggled in the preseason.
New York has spent the offseason trying to strengthen the front seven. The Jets used the No. 2 pick on Dailey Bailey, drafted nose tackle Darrell Jackson Jr. in the fourth round and signed defensive lineman David Onyemata in free agency.
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