Schmidt was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the seventh round (85th overall pick) of the 1953 NFL Draft. He joined a team that had won the 1952 NFL Championship and led the NFL in scoring defense. The Lions and Schmidt both had doubts as to whether a seventh round pick would be able to make the lineup of the best defense in the NFL. However, Schmidt impressed in the pre-season and was included in the regular season roster. In the first game of the 1953 season, he helped the Lions to a 38–21 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers; the "Detroit Free Press" wrote that Schmidt was "making tackles all over the field" and was a key in holding the Steelers to 96 rushing yards. Schmidt appeared in all 12 regular season games, intercepted two passes, and helped the Lions to the 1953 NFL Championship with the league's second best scoring defense.