How Ezukanma Parlayed UFL Stint Into NFL Job, While Cam Smith Keeps Waiting

Two of the Miami Dolphins' most disappointing draft picks of recent years have completed their season in the United Football League, and they experienced mixed results when it comes to trying to get back to the NFL.

After playing for the DC Defenders, wide receiver Erik Ezukanma signed this week with the Philadelphia Eagles, but cornerback Cam Smith has yet to even get so much as an NFL workout after playing for the Columbus Aviators.

Ezukanma was the Dolphins' second of only four picks in the 2022 draft, which consisted of Channing Tindall, Cameron Goode and Skylar Thompson, with Goode the only one still on the Miami roster.

Ezukanma caught only 15 passes in 10 regular season games with DC, along with nine rushing attempts good for 75 yards. It was that kind of versatility that at one time made Ezukanma an intriguing prospect for the Dolphins, but former Dolphins wide receivers coach Wes Welker mentioned more than once an issue with picking up the offense.

In his three seasons with Miami, Ezukanma appeared in only five games. He was among the cuts to the 53-man roster last summer before hooking up with the Jacksonville Jaguars practice squad, though he never appeared in a regular season game in 2025.

Smith, meanwhile, played six games for Columbus, did not record an interception and was credited with two pass breakups.

He missed time because of a leg injury.

The top pick in the 2023 draft as a second-round selection out of South Carolina, Smith also dealt with injuries during his time with the Dolphins, which consisted of 21 games with zero starts in 2023 and 2024 before the Dolphins placed him on the Reserve/Non-Football Illness list last summer and eventually released him.

Smith wasn't able to land with another team in 2025, though he did get a workout with the Kansas City Chiefs after they were eliminated from playoff contention.

But his name was noticeably absent this week when the UFL announced its long list of players getting NFL workouts after the Louisville Kings defeated Ezukanma's DC Defenders for the title.

With NFL offseason programs wrapping up this week, it looks like Smith will have to wait until the start of training camp if he's to get another shot at making it in the NFL.

FORMER DOLPHINS PLAYERS STAR IN UNITED BOWL

Smith and Ezunkanma were the headliners, but there was a long list of players on UFL rosters this spring, and a couple of them had the biggest plays in the championship game, known as the United Bowl.

Cornerback Cameron Dantzler, whose last stint in the NFL came with the Dolphins during training camp last summer, had not one but two huge plays.

First, he recovered a fumble in the end zone after a teammate punched the ball out of running back Xazavian Valladay's hands at the 36-yard line at the end of a 54-yard run. He later had an interception that he returned 49 yards to set up a field goal.

We said it, defense wins championships 😉 pic.twitter.com/BXA9l3vurb
— Louisville Kings (@UFLKings) June 15, 2026

And the longest pass play of the game went to wide receiver Tarik Black, who was on the Dolphins practice squad in 2024 and in training camp last summer and was playing for Louisville. Black dove for a 40-yard reception from quarterback Chandler Rogers, accounting for almost half of his passing yardage for the game.

WHAT A GRAB THIS WAS BY TARIK BLACK 🤯 pic.twitter.com/X75ssyy3EA
— Louisville Kings (@UFLKings) June 16, 2026

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