The Green Bay Packers switched defensive schemes for the first time in awhile last offseason, making Jeff Hafley – formerly the head coach at Boston College – their defensive coordinator. The Packers defense has improved with Hafley calling the shots, but that wasn't necessarily a positive for every member of the squad. Namely, linebacker Preston Smith wanted out, and he may regret the way he went about it.
Smith was eventually traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a seventh-round pick. The Steelers took on the majority of Smith's remaining salary, and thus added a plus defender to their linebacker depth. Here is how the 32-year-old reacted to the trade at the time.
"Getting out here, and getting back into a system I'm comfortable being in, playing at a high level, I'm loving it right now," Smith said in his first press conference as a member of the Steelers. "[The Pittsburgh defense] is just what I've been playing in the last nine years of my career, until this past season. It's what I'm comfortable playing in, what I got used to playing in the previous nine seasons. So being back in that system, it's like riding your favorite bike again."
Preston Smith should regret leaving the Green Bay Packers
Smith's trade demand wasn't because he was unhappy in Green Bay, and it certainly wasn't meant to disrespect the Packers organization. Hafley's 4-3 scheme didn't fit what Smith does best, so he wanted a change of scenery and system. Pittsburgh runs a 3-4 defense, which gives Smith more help on the back end and plays to his strengths in coverage and stopping the run.
Unfortunately for Smith, what seemed like a good fit on paper didn't come to fruition. Smith had a sack in his Steelers debut, but didn't offer much else. The Steelers made him a healthy scratch against the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Wild Card round, and eventually released Smith in February.
Smith has yet to find a new home, while the Packers used the seventh-round pick they acquired for him to draft defensive back Micah Robinson. The trade also allowed Green Bay to free up cap space and playing time for players like Arron Mosby and Brenton Cox Jr.
As for Smith, the veteran linebacker hasn't signed on with a new team just yet. Odds are he'll find a home by training camp, but even then a roster spot is far from guaranteed. Smith's value has dropped significantly since wanting out of Green Bay.