Report: Falcons sign EDGE Za’Darius Smith

The Falcons remain one of the healthier teams in the league as they enter Week 5 with no major injuries amongst skill position players. They’ll look to maintain the momentum under starting quarterback Michael Penix, who has won his first two starts of the season, against the stingy Ravens on Sunday Night Football.

We knew earlier this week that both Penix (knee) and Tagovailoa (back) would be sidelined, and that Cooper Rush would start. EDGE Za’Darius Smith was listed as questionable with a shoulder injury, but he will suit up for this one. Christian Harris, who had been a favorite to start at inside linebacker, is a healthy inactive, which means rookies Kendal Daniels or Harold Perkins Jr. will see extended run.

Smith, 33, retired in October 2025 as a member of the Eagles. The team released him from the reserve/retired list in June, officially making him a free agent. He is apparently hoping to continue his career. Smith played for the Browns in Weeks 1-9 during the 2024 season before being traded to the Lions.

Smith announced his retirement in the middle of the 2025 season after signing a one-year deal with Philly just ahead of Week 1. His release makes him a free agent and is an indication that he plans to return to football this year. Smith totaled 1.5 sacks in five games with the Eagles last year. He is likely a part-time player at this point in his career, but Smith still has enough left in the tank to contribute on a playoff-caliber roster.

This one comes as a bit of a surprise after Smith signed a one-year contract with the Eagles shortly before Week 1, and played in the team’s Week 6 loss to the Giants on Thursday night. The former fourth-round pick who first entered the league with the Ravens in 2015 walks away from the game with 70.5 career sacks on his resumé to go with 87 TFLs and 10 forced fumbles. Smith’s most productive seasons came with the Packers, who he signed a four-year contract with during the 2019 offseason. He earned back-to-back Pro Bowl nods during his first two years in Green Bay, racking up 26 sacks over that span and also received Second-Team All-Pro honors in 2020. Smith’s decision to walk away leaves an already banged up Eagles defense another man short. They will likely look to bring on another veteran pass rusher in the coming days to make up for his absence.

After sitting out all offseason, Smith hooks on with the Eagles on a ring-chaser contract for the season. Smith had nine sacks as well as 50 hurries per PFF charting in 2025. He’ll give Philadelphia a sure-fire outside rusher on passing downs and possibly could have a bigger role than that depending on how thing shake out in the defensive line rotation.

Smith has been linked to the Lions all offseason, with both sides noting that they had mutual interest and Brad Holmes hinting that Smith had no interest in going through training camp at this stage of his career. With Josh Paschal out an extended period of time, the Lions interest likely has only grown in a reunion at this point.

“Everything’s not just one-sided. Za’Darius has expectations, the team has expectations. Sometimes it takes a while for those things to get on the same page, especially a guy that’s been in the league as long as he has. You know, I’m sure that — I’m not saying that he doesn’t want to be in training camp, but if he misses some time (it’s not the worst thing),” Holmes added. It sounds like Smith will probably sign closer to September, and that the Lions likely remain one of the main contenders for his services.

“We just weren’t in a position to keep him at his salary. Because, look, he played some good snaps for us and he made plays for us when we acquired him, so we would have loved to been able to keep him. We just weren’t able to. ... We’ll just see how it goes,” Holmes continued. Smith’s market has been pretty quiet so far despite another big season with nine sacks and 63 pressures, but that does seem to be the way the market goes sometimes with players entering their age-33 season. We’ll probably get more clarity on where Smith will wind up after the draft. Smith would be a nice late-wave pickup in free agency for many teams at this point.

The release of Smith saves the Lions just over $5.7 million against the cap for this upcoming season. Smith, who was acquired in a trade with the Browns around last year’s trade deadline, totaled nine sacks and 35 tackles while splitting time with the two teams. He’s totaled nine or more sacks in two of his last three seasons, and his 63 pressures tied for 10th-most amongst EDGE rushers per PFF’s charting. Smith will be 33 at the start of next season. Given the exploding market for pass rushers, he may still be able to secure a two-year deal this offseason.