The Dallas Cowboys selected Michigan defensive tackle Mazi Smith with the 26th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
After his Thursday night selection, Smith joined the Cowboys Draft Show to discuss what he brings to the team.
“Every team I’ve been on, I’ve been one of the players that was going to help win the game, and that’s got to continue,” Smith said. “I’ve got to put the work in to become that and help this team win.”
In terms of where he is going to focus his efforts, it’s on stopping the run.
“My first job is to become an elite run defender and make sure I close up those gaps upfront; make sure I’m making plays and stopping that run,” Smith continued.
He also noted his intention to step it up in terms of the pass rush.
“One thing I do know that I’ve got to get better at and show more if I want to become a complete player is pass rush and working the edges. … Everyone in the league throws the ball a little more, so you’ve got to put yourself in a position to help the team and affect the game,” Smith explained.
Smith was the anchor of the defensive front that helped win back-to-back Big Ten championships and reach the College Football Playoff in consecutive years and is known for his innate ability to stop the run.
“Mazi obviously brings an element to our run game — stopping the run — that, other than [Johnathan] Hankins, we don’t have,” COO Stephen Jones explained, as the Cowboys’ brass met with the media after the conclusion of the draft’s first night.
“We just felt like [he was] a great fit for us and really did something that makes us a better defense at the end of the day,” Jones added.
While the Cowboys’ defensive unit was good overall in 2022, it did allow the 11th-most rushing yards in the NFL, as opponents gained 4.4 yards per carry.
“We wanted to improve our run defense,” Head Coach Mike McCarthy said. “It was a focal point, and I think this clearly does that. We love everything about Mazi. He was here on a [top] 30 visit, and everybody had high grades on him, [and] he’s a great fit for us.”
Yet, the Cowboys do not look at Smith as just a run-stopper.
“When you look at Mazi, you have a guy — teams run the ball now as you see things change and you look at our division — a guy that can stop that, a guy that can add that value to our defense,” Will McClay, who is vice president of player personnel, said.
“We feel like there’s upside in rushing the passer as well as being a disruptive force,” McClay summed up.
Smith was a two-year starter for the Wolverines, amassing 88 tackles and causing havoc in opposing backfields. He was named first-team All-Big 10 and his team’s Defensive MVP on a defense that included Big 10 Defensive Lineman of the Year Mike Morris.
“Everybody’s fired up about Mazi,” McCarthy remarked. “Mazi made a huge impression on all of us on his [top] 30 visit. There was some anticipation on this selection, so everybody’s ecstatic.”
Smith is the first defensive tackle Dallas has selected in the first round since the team took Miami’s Russell Maryland first overall in 1991.
The 2023 NFL Draft continues with Rounds 2 and 3 at 6 p.m. CT Friday and concludes with the final four rounds on Saturday afternoon.
