Packers fans learn to hate Za'Darius Smith all over again as refs miss dirty hit on Jordan Love
There was already no love lost between Za'Darius Smith and the Green Bay Packers. Smith's tenure in Green Bay got off to a sensational start, with double-digit sacks in both 2019 and 2020. But after an injury-plagued 2021 season, the Packers cut the edge rusher loose to get out from under his contract ... only to watch him wind up with the division rival Minnesota Vikings.
Smith wound up spending just one season in Minnesota, moving on to the Cleveland Browns in 2023 — an AFC destination well off most Packers fans' radars. But if anyone in Green Bay had forgotten about their grudge against Smith over the last 18 months, they were reminded with a vengeance on Thursday night.
Za'Darius Smith becomes Packers public enemy No. 1 after hit on Jordan Love
Thanks to a deadline deal with the Detroit Lions, Smith finds himself back in the NFC North once again. Which made Thursday night's tilt between the Lions and Packers something of a revenge game of sorts, with Smith hoping to lead his new team to a victory that would help solidify their grip on the division and the top seed in the NFC playoffs.
But Smith wasn't content to just let his play do the talking. He was going to make sure Jordan Love and the Packers felt his presence no matter what, even if he had to cross the line to do it: With Green Bay facing a third down in the first half, Smith got to Love just after he released a pass, clearly clubbing the quarterback in the head with his right hand. The refs, however, didn't think it merited a roughing the passer call, declining to throw a flag that would've kept the Packers drive alive.
The refs did NOT call roughing the passer on this play. Za'Darius Smith hits Jordan Love in the head-- broadcast says it was a missed call. pic.twitter.com/IrJVcTJTOc
— Arye Pulli (@AryePulli) December 6, 2024
It was clearly a miss from the first replay, with even Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit immediately mentioning it on the Amazon broadcast. That's cold comfort to Packers fans, who had to watch an old nemesis get away with a cheap shot on their franchise quarterback. If Dan Campbell and Co. want to beat the "dirty team" allegations, they should try a little harder to make sure that plays like this don't happen around Detroit so often.
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