NFL Rumors: Vikings' Za'Darius Smith Seeks Release; MIN Has 'No Plans' to Cut OLB

Za'Darius Smith wants a change of scenery. The Minnesota Vikings apparently aren't interested in providing him with one.

According to the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Smith is hoping to be released this offseason and likely isn't going to be granted his wish:

Kevin Seifert of ESPN reported that it has "long been expected that the Vikings would part ways with Smith," but they are not releasing him "at this time."

That would suggest the team may be exploring potential trades for the veteran pass-rusher. He may not be the only star player in Minnesota being dangled on the block, with reports that the Vikings have received trade offers for running back Dalvin Cook:

As for Smith, the 30-year-old was excellent for the Vikings in 2022, registering 10 sacks, 44 tackles (15 for loss), 24 quarterback hits, five passes defensed and a forced fumble in 15 games. It was his third season in the past four years with double-digit sacks.

He spent his first four seasons (2015-18) with the Baltimore Ravens before a three-year stint with the Green Bay Packers. The Vikings signed him last March to a three-year deal worth up to $47 million after he was released by the Packers.

He said in September that signing with Minnesota was partly about getting to face Green Bay twice a season, a team he felt didn't treat him well after he chose to get a second medical opinion and surgery on his back that kept him out for the majority of the season.

"Walking past me not saying nothing. 'Z, how's your back doing?'—there was none of that," Smith told Tyler Dunne of Go Long at the time (h/t Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk). "As you can see, that adds on to why I'm on the other side. So I can go back. I get to go back two times a year. ... I put my back on the f--king line. I put everything. And that Year 3, I was treated bad. That's why I'm here now. So I can play them twice a year."

Smith had nearly returned to Baltimore last offseason before backing out of a reportedly verbal agreement and taking Minnesota's offer instead. Now it appears his time in Minnesota may be coming to an end, though perhaps not on his preferred timeline.