Za’Darius Smith Trade Finally Comes Full Circle
The Za’Darius Smith trade from November 2024 is officially in the books, and honestly? It worked out exactly like we hoped it would back when we were all losing our minds about getting some pass rush help.
Remember the deal? Lions shipped a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 sixth-round pick to Cleveland for Smith and a 2026 seventh-rounder. Classic Lions move, trading future assets for immediate help when the window was wide open.
What We Got From That Seventh-Rounder
The Lions used that seventh-round pick on Tennessee defensive tackle Tyre West at 222 overall. A late-round flyer on a big body, which is about all you can ask for at that spot in the draft.
Smith Did His Job When It Mattered
Smith gave the Lions exactly what they needed down the stretch. Seven starts, eight appearances, four sacks when the defense was held together with duct tape and prayers. Not spectacular, but solid.
He bolted to Philadelphia for the 2025 campaign, played five games, and announced his retirement in October during the season. Classic veteran move, honestly. Get one more payday and ride off into the sunset.
Cleveland Kept Playing Hot Potato
The Browns? They couldn’t hold onto those picks if their lives depended on it. They flipped the sixth-rounder to Cincinnati in the Joe Flacco trade, because apparently trading quarterbacks within the division is normal now.
The fifth-round pick got even more interesting. Cleveland dealt it to Philadelphia in the trade that swapped backup quarterbacks Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Kenny Pickett, then it bounced around to Kansas City and Pittsburgh before landing on Iowa defensive tackle Yahya Black. He put up 28 tackles as a rookie, so at least someone got something useful out of this chain reaction.
And yes, I know what you’re thinking. The Browns managed to turn Za’Darius Smith into absolutely nothing while we got a guy who helped shore up our pass rush when Aidan Hutchinson went down. Sometimes the football gods actually smile on Detroit.
Was trading away Smith for a handful of late-round picks the smartest move Cleveland ever made, or are they just that committed to being the Browns? Let us know what you think below.
This trade still feels like such a W for us when you think about it. We needed help on the edge bad and Za’Darius came through when it mattered. Meanwhile Cleveland just kept punting on those picks, it’s almost funny how they couldn’t do anything with them.
I want to feel good about this but let’s be real, we gave up picks for a guy who didn’t stay long and then we still had to use a pick on someone else anyway. Yeah it worked out but it’s kinda just adding more to the pile of moves we gotta hope pan out.
You know what, after all the years of watching this team struggle to find pass rush help, getting a solid contribution down the stretch from a mid-season acquisition actually feels refreshing. The Browns being bad at managing assets is just a bonus at this point.
Love that we actually made something happen when Hutchinson went down instead of just letting the season fall apart. Smith showed up when we needed him and that’s what matters in football, not what Cleveland did after they traded him away.