Player No. 8
Za’Darius Smith - OLB (2022)
In 2021, Minnesota had the league’s 24th overall defense, and the franchise looked to improve in that area in 2022. One of the players the organization signed was former Packer linebacker Za’Darius Smith. Initially, the signing was curious as Smith had missed essentially the entire 2021 season with a back injury.
However, the Vikings were quick to point out that this was the same Smith that racked up 26 total sacks for Green Bay in 2019 and 2020 combined. After arriving in Minnesota, Smith started all 16 games at outside linebacker. He played like a man possessed and was named October’s NFC Defensive Player of the Month after collecting 6.5 sacks and eight tackles for loss.
Smith continued putting up good numbers (44 tackles, 10 sacks, five passes broken up) as the Vikes went 13-4 and met the New York Giants in the Wild Card round. Despite Smith’s play, Minny’s defense fell to 28th overall in 2022 and was crippled by a porous secondary.
The Vikings lost to New York in the postseason, and Smith was traded to the Cleveland Browns in May 2023.