Packers add depth at tight end by signing veteran Jonnu Smith to 1-year deal

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — The Green Bay Packers have addressed their depth issues at tight end by signing veteran Jonnu Smith to a one-year contract.

Rosenhaus Sports, which represents Smith, announced the signing in a social media post on Thursday.

Smith, 31, caught 38 passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns last season in 17 games with the Pittsburgh Steelers, who released him in March. He has 345 receptions for 3,529 yards and 30 touchdowns in his career.

Green Bay expects starting tight end Tucker Kraft to be available for the start of the regular season after he tore his right anterior cruciate ligament last November, but the Packers lacked proven options behind him while Luke Musgrave recovers from a neck injury.

Smith made the Pro Bowl in 2024 while catching 88 passes for 884 yards and eight touchdowns with the Miami Dolphins, setting or matching career highs in all three categories.

Green Bay will be his fifth team in as many seasons. He played for New England from 2021-22 and was with Atlanta in 2023 before going to Miami two years ago and Pittsburgh last season.

He spent his first four seasons with the Tennessee Titans, who selected him out of Florida International in the third round of the 2017 draft.

Smith now gets a chance to back up Kraft, who caught 32 passes for 489 yards and six touchdowns in eight games before getting injured last season.

Green Bay also returns Josh Whyle, who caught five passes for 36 yards and one touchdown in eight games for Green Bay last season. Another Green Bay tight end is Drake Dabney, who played two games in 2025.

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