Has Mazi Smith Done Enough To Survive Cowboys Roster Cuts?

Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Mazi Smith divides opinion nearly as much as quarterback Dak Prescott, with the former first-round pick yet to truly announce himself to the league.

Entering Year 3, the fact that Smith, as a first-round pick, has played in all three preseason games tells you all you need to now about his position, and against the Atlanta Falcons in the 31-13 win at AT&T Stadium, Mazi again, showed flashes with a sack and a couple of nice rushes.

But head coach Brian Schottenheimer was a little guarded when asked about Mazi post-game.

"I think Mazi played better," Schottenheimer said. "Mazi is the first one, he talked a couple weeks ago about the consistency and wanting to be more consistent, he's a guy that flashes at times, and does some really good things. I thought he had a couple really good rushes from the inside, two technique spot.

"We've got a very competitive roster. We've got a very competitive D-line group. So, it's why we got to go watch this film. I'm not being committal really on anybody, it's not just Mazi. We got a couple days to figure this out, but I thought there was some flashes. Him playing in a third preseason game shows that we wanted to see some things, and he was very comfortable with that, which is great."

Now, do we think the Cowboys are going to put Mazi in the roster cull basket? We don't, but others on social media have seen enough and want the franchise to cut ties with the former Michigan Wolverine.

Granted, defensive tackle is a hard position to stand out in, but Mazi hasn't really helped the Cowboys defense against the run, which was one of the main reasons he was drafted.

Now, after three preseason games in Year 3, Mazi still hasn't fully convinced the coaching staff.

Which tells its own story.