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Green Bay Packers: Grading the team’s free agency moves so far

By Joe Kipp

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 23: Za'Darius Smith #90 of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates blocking a pass in the second half against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on October 23, 2016 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Jets won 24-16. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 23: Za'Darius Smith #90 of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates blocking a pass in the second half against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on October 23, 2016 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Jets won 24-16. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /
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CINCINNATI, OH – JANUARY 3: Linebacker Za’Darius Smith #90 of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates after a sack during the second quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium on January 3, 2016 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andrew Weber/Getty Images)
CINCINNATI, OH – JANUARY 3: Linebacker Za’Darius Smith #90 of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates after a sack during the second quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium on January 3, 2016 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andrew Weber/Getty Images) /

ZA'DARIUS SMITH. B+. . OLB. Green Bay Packers

The first move for the Packers in 2019 NFL free agency was always going to be signing a pass rushing specialist. The only question was: Who?

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That answer came in the form of outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith, who brings his talents to Green Bay after four seasons in Baltimore. Smith signed a four-year, $66 million deal, according to Ian Rapoport. His deal includes a $20 million signing bonus.

Coming off a career-best 8.5 sacks in 2018, Smith is poised for a breakout year in defensive coordinator Mike Pettine’s defense. At 6-4 and 272 pounds, he has the ability to line up and use his pass rushing prowess from both the interior and on the edge. Pettine’s scheme relies heavily on exotic blitz packages, so the addition of Smith has a lot of his input written all over it.

Besides that, the Packers apparently had their eye on Smith for a while. Per NBC Sports’ Peter King, Green Bay attempted to trade for his services in the past. After officially hitting free agency, they couldn’t pass up the opportunity to sign him.

The one problem with this signing is the (somewhat) unproven aspect of Smith’s game and the significant amount of money he received. For a player worth roughly $16.5 million annually, why did he only have 16 starts in 58 games? Still, this signing warrants a strong “B+” as Smith appears to be a young, ascending star at a position of need.

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