Green Bay Packers, Preston Smith agree to restructured contract
NFL Insider Field Yates reports Wednesday that outside linebacker Preston Smith and the Green Bay Packers have agreed to a restructured contract. With Smith’s new contract paying him $10 million a year creating $2.4 million in cap space for the organization in 2024.
The Packers are currently projected to have just around $7.1 million in cap space despite having the youngest roster in the league. As they’ll continue to work towards seeking ways to create flexibility moving forward this offseason.
Smith still has three years remaining on his contract that he signed in 2022 and renegotiated last offseason, which was slated to pay him $12.4 million in 2024. But with him now making $10 million and the Packers saving $2.4 million against their salary cap, it’s clear that Smith took a direct pay cut to his salary.
But Mike Garafolo also reported that Green Bay has provided performance-based incentives for Smith that will give him the opportunity to earn $4 million more following the 2024 season. More than he would have initially made prior to his contract restructure.
Green Bay also restructured the contract of linebacker Rashan Gary earlier this week whose salary cap hit was the sixth largest on the team, clearing $4.781 million of cap space as well.
Smith returns for his sixth season with the Green Bay Packers, joining the team in 2019 after spending the first four seasons of his career with Washington. Selected with the No. 38 overall pick in the second of the 2015 NFL Draft out of Mississippi State.
He had a career-high 12 sacks in his debut season with the Packers in 2019, also leading the team in sacks in 2022. Serving as a staple on Green Bay’s defense over the four years.
Smith appeared all 17 games for Green Bay last season where he racked up 48 tackles, 8.0 sacks, 4.0 tackles for loss, and two forced fumbles. Including 1.5 sacks during the Packers’ two postseason games and one defended pass, as he’ll look to continue making an impact on the defensive side of the ball for Green Bay and push towards another playoff appearance.
“We gotta have a championship offseason, so everything rolls into the season because at the end of the day, those games come back to falling on your training, trusting your technique, and trusting everything you worked hard for this offseason,” Smith said following Green Bay’s playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers.