Preston Smith, Commanders Reportedly Agree to Contract Ahead of NFL Week 3

After Deatrich Wise Jr. suffered a season-ending injury in Week 2, the Washington Commanders have added veteran pass-rusher Preston Smith to boost their defensive line.

Per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Smith is going to sign with the Commanders ahead of Sunday's game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

Head coach Dan Quinn announced on Monday that Wise would miss the rest of the season. He suffered a torn left quadriceps in Washington's 27-18 loss to the Green Bay Packers.

The Commanders came out of that game with a lot of significant injuries. Austin Ekeler's season ended with a torn Achilles. Jayden Daniels' status for Week 3 is uncertain due to a sprained knee.

Wise signed a one-year deal with the Commanders as a free agent in March after spending the previous eight seasons with the New England Patriots. He was brought in to upgrade their pass-rush after losing Dante Fowler Jr. and Clelin Ferrell from the 2024 team.

Smith is returning to Washington after originally being drafted by the franchise in 2015. He spent his first four seasons with the club before signing with the Green Bay Packers as a free agent in March 2019.

The Packers dealt Smith to the Pittsburgh Steelers prior to the trade deadline last season. In 17 appearances between the two teams, he finished with five tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks.

Smith has recorded 157 quarterback hits and 70.5 sacks in 163 career games. Now, at the age of 32, he is best utilized as a rotation player who can be used in obvious pass-rush situations and third downs.

The Commanders are currently tied for 16th in the NFL with four sacks. Dorance Armstrong Jr. leads the team with two sacks.

Adding Smith isn't going to dramatically move the needle for the Commanders as they look to rebound from their Week 2 loss, but he offers depth at a spot where they were already thin coming into the season and lost one of their key starters to an injury.

The Commanders will host the Raiders on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.