Detroit Lions to cut star defender in shock move after trading for him mid-season

After trading for a star piece on the defensive line last season, the Detroit Lions are set to cut that same player - as he's a luxury the team can no longer afford.

In a surprising move, multiple reports indicate that the team will be releasing Za'Darius Smith ahead of the start of free agency.

Detroit traded a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Cleveland Browns in November in order to use his talents mid-way through last season.

That was a trade out of necessity after the Lions' star pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson went down with a season-ending injury.

In the offseason, Detroit re-signed edge rusher Marcus Davenport to a deal after he was injured earlier in the season.

Add to that a healthy Josh Paschal and it appears that the Lions no longer need Smith's skills.

It's a surprising move not only because the Lions gave up picks, but because Smith performed well for Detroit.

There would be no universe where they cut Hutchinson now. Paschal played 14 games last season, but only managed 15 tackles and two sacks. Davenport only played two games and got half a sack and has not played double-digit games since 2022.

Smith, on the other hand, may have only played eight games in Detroit - but he finished the season with four sacks for the Lions. That's the second most on the team behind the injured Hutchinson.

So, this appears to be less of a decision about statistics and more about contracts. 

Hutchinson is a top player on the team and they just signed Davenport this offseason. If they cut Paschal, the Lions would take on a dead cap hit of $700,000.

But when it comes to Smith, the Lions are able to move his entire salary - which would have had a cap hit of $5.7million - off the books with this cut.

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