The Dallas Cowboys decided to bolster the interior of their defensive line in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. They selected Mazi Smith out of Michigan, one of the top defensive tackles in the college ranks, and the hope was that he would be the force in the middle that the Cowboys needed, especially against the run where they have had issues for quite a while.
Smith’s rookie campaign didn't go as smoothly as planned. He appeared in all 17 games but logged just three starts and played only 304 snaps. Smith finished with a pedestrian 13 tackles (three tackles for loss) and one sack.