The life of an NFL football player can take weird turns that no one sees coming. A flashy pre-draft performance can catapult a player to pre-NFL superstardom, but as former Miami Dolphins DT Mazi Smith is finding out, it could push you beyond your limits.
Smith was drafted 26th overall by the Dallas Cowboys in 2023. He started 20 games in his first two seasons, but then it all started going south. The Cowboys sent Smith to the Jets as part of the Quinnen Williams trade, which didn't last long for New York.
After spending half of last year with the Jets, Smith wasn't retained beyond training camp. The Dolphins claimed him off waivers on September 1st. Now, he is heading to free agency with no idea where his future is going to take him.
Miami Dolphins release Mazi Smith during early bye week roster trim
The Dolphins activated Smith from the practice squad on October 3rd and, not surprisingly, put him back on the PS a couple of days after the game. On Wednesday, the Dolphins released him from the practice squad, and it doesn't look like he will be back.
Miami isn't saying what the problem is, but there is clearly something missing between the practices and the games, as the Dolphins were his third team. It says a lot about a player when they can't make Miami's roster, and that is exactly what fans are wondering now.
Head coach Jeff Hafley admitted that this was a good time to evaluate everything from the coaching staff to the players. “I think it will be a good time for us to look hard and evaluate the players, evaluate the scheme, evaluate how we’re coaching, evaluate what certain guys can do, and take a hard look and then come back and go back to work,” Jeff Hafley said to the media after their Week 5 loss to the Bengals. “It’s going to be who we are. We’re going to roll up our sleeves, and this group’s going to work. And I know that they’re going to.”
Smith is just one of several moves the Dolphins made. There are not many options left for the Dolphins, so it's unlikely that big moves will be made and highly unlikely that the Dolphins will make a trade for a veteran prior to the trade deadline.
Miami is evaluating the talent and trying to develop it at the same time. Whatever kept Mazi off the field is something that clearly wasn't a fit for what Hafley is hoping to build.
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