The Packers released Za'Darius Smith on Monday in a rather unsurprising move. The main reason was because of money. Smith was going to cost a little more than $27.6 million against the cap in 2022, which was unsustainable considering the Packers' cap situation at the time.

It wasn't just about the money, though. Another big reason for Smith's departure was the development of Rashan Gary in 2021. Gary didn't force Smith out, but his 2021 season certainly gave the Packers plenty of confidence in their pass rush without Smith on the roster.

Without Smith, Gary will resume his 2021 role as the team's starting EDGE opposite of Preston Smith.

And based off last year's tape and stats, that's a great thing for the Packers. Because Gary is ready to explode in 2022.

The Packers' fourth-year pass rusher set career-highs across the board in 2021. His 9.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, 28 quarterback hits, 8.0 tackles for loss, 47 combined tackles, and 27 solo tackles were all bests.

But as we know in 2022, raw stats don't tell the story. Advanced analytics are very helpful when it comes to fully understanding how effective a player really is.

And to some surprise, Gary was an elite pass rusher in regard to said analytics. Per Pro Football Focus, Gary logged 463 pass rush snaps in 2021, which was the 17th-most among all EDGE players. That's obviously not an advanced stat, but it's important because it shows that we are dealing with a large sample size, which gives us a better indication of his overall effectiveness.

Per PFF, Gary finished third in pass rush productivity (14.8) and second in win rate (35.2%) when rushing against a true pass set in 2021. This is among the top-33 EDGE rushers with at least 420 pass rush snaps on the year.

He finished second in pass rush productivity (10.4) and second in win rate (26%). For those unaware of the difference between these two categories: A true pass set is when the opposing offensive line is unquestionably in pass protection, while the standard set is a bit more ambiguous. He also finished with the second-most total pressures in both a true pass set (57) and a standard set (81).

In the aforementioned context, Gary had better overall numbers than both Joey and Nick Bosa, Von Miller, Chandler Jones, Shaquil Barrett, and his own teammate in P. Smith.

Yes, sacks are what you want at the end of the day, but overall pressure numbers -especially these numbers- will eventually lead to those sacks. It's basic math: The more often you win against your assignment and pressure the quarterback, the more likely you are to sack the quarterback.

Gary isn't just a one-trick pony, either. He can defend against the run when his number is called, as well. PFF has him with the 12th-highest grade among EDGE players with at least 210 run defense snaps. His 3.0% missed tackle rate is the fourth-best rate and his 7.2% stop rate is 12th-best among qualifying players.

It's pretty clear why Gary should have a big year for the Packers in 2022. Not only did he show himself capable of being an elite pass rusher, but he also showed strong skills defending against the run for the Packers.

It's never fun to see a player of Z. Smith's caliber leave, but it's clear the Packers know they have a star-in-waiting in Gary.

And when you have a young player that's coming into their own, you've gotta give them as many snaps as possible.

That's exactly what the Packers will do in 2022. And Gary will thrive, as a result.

Featured image via Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK