Roquan Smith‘s hold-in effort has taken a turn. The standout linebacker does not appear on the cusp of being extended and is instead requesting to be traded from the Bears.
The fifth-year defender put out a statement (via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, on Twitter) indicating the Bears have failed to negotiate in good faith and do not appropriately value him. Noting he has not yet spoken with the McCaskey family during his extension talks, Smith pins the blame on a new Bears regime that has attempted to “take advantage of me.”
This request stems from the Bears submitting a “take it or leave it” offer that would be “bad for myself and the entire LB market,” Smith adds, and Rapoport notes the team’s backloaded proposal contains de-escalators and does not top Shaquille Leonard‘s $19.7MM-per-year Colts contract (Twitter link). The linebacker market moved last year, when Leonard and Fred Warner‘s deals came in above Bobby Wagner‘s previous positional record.
Both Leonard and Warner — each part of Smith’s draft class, though their non-first-round statuses made them priorities a year ahead of Smith — are signed to accords north of $19MM per year. Like Wagner, Smith is not believed to have an agent. A family member has advised him during the Bears’ negotiations. The Bears chose Smith eighth overall in 2018, and their defense is now short on veteran contracts.
Smith is coming off a season in which he played all 17 Bears games and made a career-best 163 tackles. Despite playing off the ball, Smith has 14 career sacks as well. Pro Football Focus, however, rated Smith outside its top 60 off-ball ‘backers in 2021, interestingly rating his run defense as far inferior to his coverage performance.
Smith’s accolades do not match Leonard’s or Warner’s, complicating these negotiations. But he is undoubtedly pushing to join those standouts atop the linebacker market. Earlier this summer, Ryan Poles said a new deal before the season was not a lock but indicated discussions ahead of camp were on tap. The former top-10 pick has upped the pressure on the rookie GM. Smith, who is on the Bears’ active/PUP list, is currently tied to a $9.735MM fifth-year option salary.
A zero-time Pro Bowler but a two-time second-team All-Pro, Smith is one of the final veterans standing from a top-tier Bears defense. The team traded Khalil Mack, cut Danny Trevathan and Eddie Goldman and let Akiem Hicks leave in free agency. Robert Quinn was linked to wanting a trade earlier this offseason, and while the veteran now seems somewhat out of place on what has become a rebuilding team’s defense, he said late last month he is not seeking to be dealt. But Quinn has already signed two big-ticket deals. Smith, 25, is seeking his first veteran contract.
Considering the salary cap’s stabilization, after 2021 brought just its second-ever reduction, Smith almost certainly would not accept a deal south of C.J. Mosley‘s $17MM-per-year accord. That sits third on the linebacker spectrum, with the Seahawks shedding Wagner’s contract in March. The Bears would have the option of the franchise tag in 2023, though that route is not as clear-cut as it is with most other positions. Since outside and inside linebackers are grouped together on the tag, the position carried the second-highest tag price ($18.7MM) this year. That lofty figure limits the Bears’ options with their extension-seeking middle ‘backer.
The Bears are carrying more than $18MM in cap space, placing them in the top 10 for available funds. They are also eating more than $57MM in dead money, with previous Mack restructures responsible for much of that figure. Smith’s trade request comes a year after Allen Robinson detailed frustrations about his negotiating efforts with the Bears, though Smith’s frustrations lie with new front office personnel.
The Georgia product said he wanted to stay with the Bears throughout his career but does not “see a path back to the organization.” With Smith one of the only foundational pieces left on Chicago’s defense, the ball will be in Poles’ court for the time being.
If he’s not going to sign, He’d be a cancer to a new regime and who needs that? He is a SAM 3-4 LB, That’s his best position. They should of dealt him at the draft but since he’s not here, Why not get some future picks who WANT to be here. Last thing Poles and Eberflus need right now is a cancer in the locker room. With the Bears changing schemes, He can go. Besides, He’s already missed games with some sort of Mental issue that was never revealed.
Hard to ignore the 60th ranking of off ball linebacker.
Smith has a contract, right? But instead of honoring it, he’s “holding in” and demands a trade. Why would another team trade for a guy who doesn’t abide by the spirit of his deal?
So then why would a player sign with a team who releases players or trades them before the contract is up? Football is a business and the players can look out for themselves just as much as the teams can.
Washington def needs this guy..
The Redskins already have a number one draft pick Jamin Davis as off-ball linebacker. The Redskins need a Sam or Mike, not a Will.
Besides, Another 10 million in cap space would look nice on cut down day and give Poles like 25 million to get another LB if that’s what he wants. There’s always good players available who get priced off their teams by being replaced by younger guys. All you need is Cap Space. Not to mention the extra space they’d save next year to add to a huge pool already.
They already have 100 mil in cap space for next season, and Roquan is their only All Pro caliber player. Yeah having cap space is great, but there’s a finite amount of elite players who hit free agency. The most likely scenario is the Bears do next year what the Jaguars did this year: overpay on a bunch of mediocre free agents (which they can justify by saying “hey at least we’re better today than we were yesterday”), thus locking themselves into mediocrity and plunging them into cap hell. Jettisoning Roquan would be incomprehensibly stupid for a team that doesn’t have any other elite talent but does have a ton of cap space.
Well let’s hope Poles is smarter than Pace( I don’t see a problem there) and spends it wisely. Just because you HAVE tons of space, doesn’t mean you have to THROW IT AWAY stupidly. The idea is to spend smart and leave room to EXTEND the guys you want to, when you need to. We don’t know if he’s the same player in a 4-3 as he was in a 3-4, especially playing with Mack and Quinn. They can make other people look better. I say launch him. This isn’t a one year fix. It’s going to take at least 3 drafts to get the players Eberflus and Getsy want.
Elite talent is elite talent–Roquan is a fit in any scheme, and projects to be a great fit as the weakside LB in the Flus 4-3. If you don’t want to extend Roquan, who else on this team is even worth extending? Mooney and maybe JJ? And if you really think it’s gonna take 3 years to rebuild a team that has 100 mil in cap space in a league where teams go last to 1st literally every year, then why not just trade Fields? I mean if it’s really like that you’re just gonna waste Fields’ entire rookie scale deal being a garbage team so you might as well recoup some value. I’m not in favor of that at all but I’m just saying if you’re not gonna pay to keep your elite talent and you have no goal of being good in the next 3 years then you’re not really building around Fields.
Why not trade Fields? Do we really know if Getsy thinks he’s the QB who can run his offense? He says all the right things but Fields wasn’t drafted with Getsy in mind. In fact, we really don’t what Fields was drafted for because Trubisky and Fields could be epic fails in a Getsy offense. Nagy really had no plan, and Pace had no clue. So like you said, why pay him if he’s not THE GUY? Let’s face it, The Bears will have a high draft pick next year, maybe even #1 so THAT’s when we’ll see what Poles, Eberflus and Getsy think of Fields.
Yeah if the Bears got the #1 next year then they could draft a QB who they could trade in another year!
Jags seem to do that every offseason!
He doesn’t see a path back to the organization? He’s under a contract. It’s the rules of the CBA. Sick of these children demanding trades when they can’t get paid as the top of there position.
He’s a great player. For sure. But he’s under a contract. Play under the rules of the CBA and the contract he signed. Or sit at home with no job or pay. Ridiculous.
He sat out during his rookie contract negotiations as well. This must be his thing.
Your thing is saying that an NFL player should be forced to sit at home if he tries to get a new contract.
My thing is people fulfilling there commitments and keeping there word. He is not being forced to do anything.
It’s his decision to sit out of practice with his teammates even though he has a contract. Your thing must be a sense of entitlement? Fulfill your commitments. Live up to your word. Be a man. Not a mousy rat.
Gosh, why isn’t he ride or die loyal to a contract he had almost no control over, with a team he didn’t choose, with a new front office and coaching staff that didn’t pick him, and which doesn’t seem to value him or have interest in winning this year?
Besides, you pull this with everyone. Even guys who were “holding in” during training camp when it turns out they were just ironing out contracts. You treated Deebo like a cancer when he was in training camp playing catch with Shanahan’s son. You just like bashing these guys and dreaming about how you’d rule over them with an iron fist, when that’s not how smart teams operate.
Players requesting a trade when they don’t get there way is getting very tiresome. It’s one of the reasons I stopped watching the NBA and the NFL is headed down the same path.
You stopped watching a sport bc of contracts for players?
You must really love basketball.
Do you also not see movies when actors request more money for sequels?
If that’s his choice… yes. He has the freedom of choice.
The NBA is doing great in both ratings and quality of play. Sorry you’re tired, I guess.
Man the Bears are quite the circus. I wouldn’t want to play there either. They had a pretty stacked D and a horrible coach. Just seems like this dysfunction starts at the top of the organization. Wish Roquan the best.
Another player who “ wants to spend the rest of his career” with the team. Come on man we all want paid why continue to say this crap.
None this matters if Justin Fields has no one to throw to
Miami might be a good trade partner since they have excess WR’s and are shopping a couple of them.
Come on Howie
Shaquille Leonard? You mean Darius.
Yikes!
He requested to go by his middle name which is Shaquille.
Oh wow. That I did not know. They haven’t updated it on football reference yet. My apologies to the writer of this article.
Darius Shaquille Leonard. That’s his full name. Not sure if he’s going by his middle name now.
He is. He apparently went by it most of his life.
Trade him! The Bears want guys who will play under their signed contracts. If the trade offer isn’t fair, let him sit out. That worked out great for L. Bell.
WAY TO GO GEORGIE!!! YOUVE NOW MANAGED TO PISS OFF THE ONLY GOOD PLAYER THE BEARS HAVE. TAKE GRAMMA AND JUST LEAVE.
Call up the Texans who have plenty of cap space and 12 picks in the 2023 draft. Get a 2nd and one of their extra 3rds and be done with it.
How odd that a 2nd team all pro player wouldn’t get named to the pro bowl – twice.
As for his contract, his numbers seem to indicate he is one of the top five or six at his position, so an offer roughly commensurate with that would seem to be in order – but he isn’t worth the biggest payout.
Ravens need him more than anybody.There lbs are horrible