Player: OLB Preston Smith
Stock Value: Purchased
Reasoning: In a somewhat surprising move, the Steelers bolstered their edge depth with the trade acquisition of Preston Smith. While on the back end of his career, he still has something left in the tank, and the Steelers could potentially get the most out of him in a more reduced role. Not dissimilar to Markus Golden or Melvin Ingram, he gives them a highly experienced, accomplished reserve rusher.
The Steelers only had to give up a seventh-round pick to land Preston Smith, so there isn’t much to complain about. The former second-round pick might not be at the height of his powers, but he is only one year removed from a three-season stretch with eight-plus sacks each.
And Smith is coming in to play behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith and, once he’s fully healthy, Nick Herbig. The addition of Smith also allows the Steelers to be as cautious with Herbig as is warranted. The second-year pass rusher is still on the mend from a hamstring injury, and they don’t want a setback.
Preston Smith is a 10th-year veteran, spending the majority of his career in Green Bay. In 138 starts over 155 career games, he has 68.5 sacks, 430 tackles, 71 tackles for loss, 10 forced fumbles, and five interceptions. He also has two defensive touchdowns.
Smith has played a bit more rotationally this season despite being the nominal starter, logging only 54 percent of the Packers’ defensive snaps. In 308 snaps played, he has 19 tackles, two for loss, with 2.5 sacks.
The Steelers could easily ask Smith to play half that amount and potentially receive similar production. With another major hand in the pile, the entire group can benefit from fresher reps. This likely knocks Jeremiah Moon out of the rotation, and potentially, eventually, off the roster. But for now, Preston Smith is just the Steelers getting richer in an area in which they were already wealthy.
As the season progresses, Steelers players’ stocks rise and fall. The nature of the evaluation differs with the time of year, with in-season considerations being more often short-term. Considerations in the offseason often have broader implications, particularly when players lose their jobs, or the team signs someone. This time of year is full of transactions, whether minor or major.
A bad game, a new contract, an injury, a promotion—any number of things affect a player’s value. Think of it as a stock on the market, based on speculation. You’ll feel better about a player after a good game, or worse after a bad one. Some stock updates are minor, while others are likely to be quite drastic, so bear in mind the degree. I’ll do my best to explain the nature of that in the reasoning section of each column.
