At their core, the Dallas Cowboys are a draft-and-develop team. Their commitment to cultivating homegrown talent is often used to justify their conservative approach in free agency.
That leaves very little margin for error in the draft, which is why Dallas' 2023 class set the team back years. The returns on first-round pick Mazi Smith and second-rounder Luke Schoonmaker are equivalent to those of an undrafted free agent.
Smith was traded to the New York Jets as part of the Quinnen Williams blockbuster, and Schoonmaker is headed for a similar fate if he doesn't break out in 2026.
It's only natural to keep tabs on a former first-round pick -- even a bust of Smith's magnitude -- and Cowboys fans won't be surprised to learn that he's struggled to make an impression in Florham Park, as the Jets declined to exercise his fifth-year option.
Former Dallas Cowboys first-round pick Mazi Smith is falling out of favor with the Jets
Smith's fifth-year option would have cost nearly $14 million, which would've been an obscene price to pay for a player who barely saw the field post-trade. The former Michigan standout only appeared in three games and logged just 53 defensive snaps.
It's hard to see any role for Smith on New York's defense next season, as general manager Darren Mougey and head coach Aaron Glenn overhauled their interior defensive line this offseason.
The overhaul actually started last August, when the Jets traded for vets Jowon Briggs and Harrison Phillips. Briggs proved to be an excellent pickup, ranking fourth among DTs with an 85.6 pass-rush grade and 19th with 38 pressures, per Pro Football Focus.
New York then traded for former Tennessee Titans second-round pick T'Vondre Sweat, whose run-stopping chops (79.4 run-defense grade in '25, per PFF) are an ideal complement next to Briggs.
In free agency, the Jets signed David Onyemata, who has started 115 games in his career. They followed that by using a fourth-round pick on Florida State DT Darrell Jackson.
Unlike with the Cowboys, whose DT room was an albatross during his tenure, Smith will face real competition to make the Jets' 53-man roster. With Glenn coaching for his job, Smith's first-round pedigree won't buy him any favors in New York.
The Jets seemingly will give Smith the full summer to prove he belongs. But it would hardly come as a surprise if he falls short. After barely playing him post-trade and rebuilding the DT room, they reinforced their stance by declining his fifth-year option.
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