Smith played college football for two years at East Mississippi Community College before transferring to the University of Kentucky. In his two years at East Mississippi, he recorded 66 tackles and 11 sacks. In his first year at Kentucky, Smith started all 12 games and recorded 59 tackles and six sacks, which ranked seventh in the SEC. As a senior in 2014, Smith had 60 tackles and 4.5 sacks.
Collegiate statistics
Professional career
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens selected Smith in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. Smith was the 17thdefensive end drafted in 2015. The pick used to draft him was acquired from the Detroit Lions in exchange for Haloti Ngata. On May 8, 2015, the Baltimore Ravens signed Smith to a four-year, $2.76 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $483,152. As a rookie in 2015, Smith played 15 games with 30 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and 2 pass defended. In the 2016 season, he played in 13 games and started four. He recorded one pass defensed, one forced fumble, one sack, 20 tackles, and four quarterback hits. In the 2017 season, he appeared in 14 games and started four. He recorded one pass defensed, one forced fumble, 3.5 sacks, 24 tackles, and 16 quarterback hits. In Week 6 of the 2018 season, Smith recorded three sacks, which was part of the new team record 11 sacks, in a 21–0 win over the Tennessee Titans, earning him AFC Defensive Player of the Week. He finished the season with career-highs with 45 combined tackles, 8.5 sacks, two passes defensed and a forced fumble. He led the Ravens in sacks and finished sixth on the team in tackles.
On March 14, 2019, Smith signed a four-year, $66 million contract with the Green Bay Packers. In Smith's debut as a Packer in week 1, he made 3 tackles and sacked Mitchell Trubisky once in the 10–3 win over the Chicago Bears. In week 6 against the Detroit Lions, Smith recorded a sack on Matthew Stafford in the 23–22 win. In week 8 against the Kansas City Chiefs, Smith sacked Matt Moore twice in the 31–24 win. In week 12 against the San Francisco 49ers, Smith recorded a team high 6 tackles and sacked Jimmy Garoppolo once in the 37–8 loss. In week 16 against the Minnesota Vikings, Smith sacked Kirk Cousins 5 times during the 23–10 win. In the Divisional Round of the playoffs against the Seattle Seahawks, Smith recorded 2 sacks on Russell Wilson during the 28–23 win.
Legal troubles
On September 29, 2019, Smith was cited by the Racine County Sheriff's Office for possession of marijuana and speeding in a construction zone. Smith and teammates Rashan Gary and Kingsley Keke were returning to Green Bay from Chicago when a deputy stopped them for driving 81 mph in a 60-mph construction zone near the intersection of Interstate 94 and Highway 20 in the town of Mount Pleasant. The deputy smelled the odor of marijuana in the vehicle and searched it, discovering three blunts and a THC vaping cartridge in a duffel bag in the rear of the vehicle. None of the men appeared to be high or had any drugs or paraphernalia on their persons when searched, but all three were briefly placed in handcuffs, questioned separately, and then released after Smith admitted to ownership of the paraphernalia, as well as to smoking marijuana before leaving Chicago. Smith cooperated with the officer throughout the incident, and hired a lawyer who entered a plea of not guilty on the charges of speeding and possession of marijuana; a hearing is scheduled for February 20, 2020.
