The New York Giants made a late addition ahead of the team’s Week 15 matchup against the Dallas Cowboys. The Giants signed former Cowboys linebacker Jaylon Smith to the team’s practice squad, per USA Today’s Art Stapleton.
“Giants just snuck this one in their daily release today: they’ve signed former Cowboys LB Jaylon Smith to the practice squad,” Stapleton tweeted on December 17. “Interesting timing.”
The Cowboys released Smith on October 5 after playing in four games with the team this season, including two starts. Smith then signed with the Packers on October 7 but he was released by the team on November 2, less than a month after joining Green Bay. The former Cowboys starter played in just 27 snaps in two appearances before being released by the Packers.
“Can confirm that the Packers have released ILB Jaylon Smith. His tryout lasted 27 snaps in two games, which isn’t exactly a lot of time to prove himself,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Tom Silverstein tweeted on November 2. “But the Packers probably need the roster spot for Bakhtiari or MVS and/or anyone they sign or trade for by end of the day.”
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The Cowboys Face the Giants in Week 15
It is curious timing for the Giants to add Smith just days before they face the Cowboys. Yet, if they were really looking to gain an advantage by having information on the Cowboys, it would have made more sense for the Giants to make the move earlier in the week.
“Giants have signed former Cowboys LB Jaylon Smith to their practice squad leading up to the teams’ Sunday matchup at MetLife Stadium,” Dallas Morning News’ Michael Gehlken tweeted on December 17. “Smith has been assigned No. 54, per the Giants’ online roster. No. 9 is claimed (punter Riley Dixon).”
The Cowboys Did Not Want to be Responsible for Smith’s 2022 Salary
The Cowboys released Smith, in part, because the team did not want to be on the hook for his 2022 salary if he sustained a serious injury. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones admitted it was a difficult decision but pointed to his inability to return back to full health as a big reason for the team’s decision despite signing him to a five-year, $64 million contract extension in 2019.
“Well, it was [hard] principally because he’s such a warrior,” Jones noted during an October 8 interview with Dallas’ 105.3 the Fan. “He really was what you think about when you think of somebody overcoming adversity and for this game. He had [a] great hurdle to overcome to overcome his injury and that drop foot, it’s called drop foot that he had and still takes him to this day, was mind over matter in my mind. Now, there was a lot of physical rehab they had to do to people such as specifically Jason Witten and such as Sean Lee. When they would work with him as he was rehabbing [they] would tell me we’ve never seen anybody go to the levels that he’ll push himself for this rehab or to overcome this injury, we’ve never seen anybody.
“Well, look at who’s saying that, Witten and Sean Lee. So, he had the right stuff and I thought it was really unfortunate because I love what he’s about as a person and the fact that he’s worked so hard as far as entrepreneurial [efforts] supporting of minority entrepreneurs. And he has that understanding of how to take it and run with it and that one in one can be three. So he had a combination of not just talking about it on the field, he did it on the field. He had a combination of talking about it and doing it off the field. I think he’s going to be an outstanding success and he has already, but an outstanding success beyond his football career.”
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