Packers place OLB Za’Darius Smith on injured reserve

The move previewed by coach Matt LaFleur earlier in the day was made official on Friday. The Green Bay Packers placed outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith on injured reserve.

Smith, who is battling a lingering back injury, was replaced on the 53-man roster by outside linebacker La’Darius Hamilton, who was signed off the practice squad of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Before practice on Friday, LaFleur said the Packers were shutting down Smith “for a while.”

The team hopes to get Smith back at 100 percent this season.

“It’s a matter of just, do you keep him in a limited role? Or do you shut him down for a while, try to get him healthy and then get him up to the snap count that we’d like him to be, just like he’s been in the past? He’s such an impact player. So that’s just the route that we thought was best long term,” LaFleur said.

Smith missed almost all of training camp but played 18 snaps in the season opener against the New Orleans Saints. He began camp on the non-football injury list, meaning the injury was suffered outside of the practice field this offseason.

Instead of Smith laboring through the week and playing on a handful of snaps while recovering from the injury, the Packers decided to keep him off the field so the injury can fully heal.

Going on injured reserve does not mean Smith’s season is over, but he will miss at least three games before he’s eligible to be designated for return.

Smith made the Pro Bowl in 2019 and 2020 and was a second-team All-Pro in 2020. He has played in all 33 games since joining the Packers as a free agent in 2019. Monday night’s meeting with the Detroit Lions will be his first missed game with the Packers.

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