After three years in Green Bay, Za’Darius Smith will be released by the Packers this spring. The linebacker feels he was mistreated by the Cheeseheads and looks forward to future clashes. Such as Sunday’s.

Munich – On Sunday, Za’Darius Smith will play his first game for the Minnesota Vikings. At the U.S. Bank Stadium, the edge rusher will meet many familiar faces. But most of them will be positioned on the other side of the field, because in the first Vikings game of the NFL season, which starts on Thursday, he will play against his former team Green Bay Packers.

Smith spent three years with the Cheeseheads before being released in March – which in turn gave the Packers a lot of financial leeway.

Last season, the 29-year-old only played in two games for head coach Matt LaFleur’s team: in the opening game and in the play-off loss to the San Francisco 49ers. The reason was a back surgery Smith had to undergo, but which he says also strained his relationship with the Wisconsin franchise.

Za’Darius Smith felt he was mistreated by Packers

So he explained on the “Go Long” podcast that it felt to him “like everything went down the drain” when he sought a second medical opinion. This, in turn, had led to the decision to have surgery – and to him becoming “a nobody” on the team.

That he joined a division rival after his release was only fuelled by this. “They passed me and nobody said, ‘Z, how’s your back?”, none of that happened.” He continued, “That’s another reason why I’m on the other side now. Now I can go back twice a year right away. “

Za’Darius Smith: “I put my back on the line “

The way he was handled in Green Bay still hurts the linebacker. “I put my back on the line. I put it all on the line – and I was treated badly in my third year. That’s why I’m here now, so I can play them twice a year.”

What’s missing from Smith’s comments is that he originally agreed to a contract with the Baltimore Ravens, but he resigned from that a short time later.