Tag: Bears inside linebacker

PFF says Roquan Smith entering prove-it year with Bears in 2020

Bears ILB Roquan Smith, whose sophomore campaign didn’t exactly go as planned, and PFF believes he’s entering a prove-it year.

When you’re coming off a disappointing 2019 season, that included a 8-8 record and third-place finish in the NFC North, there’s plenty of blame to go around. There are several players and coaches on the Chicago Bears under pressure heading into the new year.

Obviously a lot of pressure falls on Chicago’s offense, as they were one of the worst units a season ago. But while the defense had a solid year, there’s still room for this defense to make improvement in 2020.

Pro Football Focus compiled a list of players that are entering prove-it years in 2020, which included Bears inside linebacker Roquan Smith, whose sophomore campaign didn’t exactly go as planned.

When he came into the league, Roquan Smith looked tailor-made for the modern NFL — a linebacker who excelled in coverage in college with the athleticism, instincts and feel for the game to be a difference-maker at the next level. Yet, the player we saw at Georgia has yet to really show up in the NFL with any degree of regularity. Smith has made a lot of tackles and missed relatively few (17 in 234 attempts), but his PFF grades reflect a player still trying to find consistency, particularly in coverage where he was so special in college. A top-10 draft pick in 2018, Smith enters Year 3 needing to show the Bears he can be a difference-maker on defense — not just another body who is a relatively solid tackler.

Following an impressive rookie season, Smith suffered a setback in his sophomore year. After a slow start to the season, which included a healthy scratch in Week 5, Smith was playing some of the best football before he suffered a torn pectoral muscle that caused him to miss the final three games of the season.

Last season, Smith had a team-best 101 tackles, including five tackles for loss, two sacks, two passes defensed and an interception. While it was solid, it was far from what Smith expects from himself.

Smith says he has a “huge chip” on his shoulder heading into 2020, but he feels like he’s geared up for a bounce-back year. The former first-round pick will surely be playing for his next contract, and he’s determined to show why he’s worthy of sticking around.

“I just feel like I have a lot that I have to live up to myself — my personal goals and then team goals and things of that nature,” Smith said. “I’m definitely just trying to make this year my best year possible, better than any of the other years I’ve had, and just maximize myself.

“If I come out each and every week and play to my standard, I feel like everything else will just take care of itself. That’s my main thing, like, coming out and playing to my standard, doing whatever I can to control what I can, and not letting up anything. Just being relentless. Just putting everything on me.”

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Roquan Smith dubbed Bears’ key homegrown player for 2020

Bears ILB Roquan Smith says he has a “huge chip” on his shoulder heading into 2020, and he believes that this will be his best season yet.

NFL.com’s Gregg Rosenthal examined one key homegrown player — a player on a rookie deal — for each NFL team that figures to make a significant impact in 2020. For the Chicago Bears, it was inside linebacker Roquan Smith, who’s entering his third season.

Bears fans love Roquan Smith. Bears coaches love Roquan Smith. Bears teammates love Roquan Smith. PFF does not love Roquan Smith. Smith ranked 44th among 58 off-ball linebackers who played at least 500 snaps last season. The eye test isn’t thrilling, either. He gets washed out of running plays too often. His expected strength entering the league was in pass coverage, but he hasn’t stood out there, either, sometimes getting taken off the field. There is value in a heady defensive signal-caller whom numbers can’t fully evaluate, but there just haven’t been the impact plays expected from a top-10 pick. Perhaps this is the year Smith earns all that love.

Following an impressive rookie campaign, Smith suffered a setback in his sophomore year. But after a slow start, Smith was playing some of the best football before he suffered a torn pectoral muscle that caused him to miss the final three games of the season.

Last season, Smith had a team-best 101 tackles, including five tackles for loss, two sacks, two passes defensed and an interception.

Smith says he has a “huge chip” on his shoulder heading into 2020, and he believes that this will be his best season yet. This is shaping up to be an important year for Smith, who will be playing for his next contract.

“I just feel like I have a lot that I have to live up to myself — my personal goals and then team goals and things of that nature,” Smith said. “I’m definitely just trying to make this year my best year possible, better than any of the other years I’ve had, and just maximize myself.

“If I come out each and every week and play to my standard, I feel like everything else will just take care of itself. That’s my main thing, like, coming out and playing to my standard, doing whatever I can to control what I can, and not letting up anything. Just being relentless. Just putting everything on me.”

And given some of the moves the Bears made on defense this offseason — including the addition of outside linebacker Robert Quinn and resigning Smith’s running mate in linebacker Danny Trevathan — this could be a big year for the entire defense.

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Roquan Smith has ‘huge chip’ on his shoulder heading into 2020

Bears ILB Roquan Smith had to overcome some adversity last season, but he believes that he’s poised for his best season yet in 2020.

Bears general manager Ryan Pace hasn’t hit on his first-round picks, but inside linebacker Roquan Smith could be the exception. Smith had to overcome some adversity last season, including a season-ending injury, but he believes that he’s poised for his best season yet in 2020.

“I got a huge chip on my shoulder,” Smith told reporters Wednesday. “Just really excited. I don’t want much hype going into the year, because I know my mindset and what I plan to do this upcoming season. God willing, I stay healthy, I definitely feel like it’s going to be my best year to date. I feel like I’m going to do some things. A lot of people counted me out.”

During his rookie season, Smith was named a Pro Bowl alternate as a rookie after tallying a team-leading 121 tackles, five sacks, eight tackles-for-loss, one interception and five pass breakups.

While Smith’s second season didn’t go as well — he missed one game due to personal reasons and missed the final three games due to injury — he was playing his best football in the second half of the season. Smith has led the Bears in tackles in his first two seasons, and he’ll be looking to better that kind of production in Year 3.

“I just feel like I have a lot that I have to live up to myself — my personal goals and then team goals and things of that nature,” Smith said. “I’m definitely just trying to make this year my best year possible, better than any of the other years I’ve had, and just maximize myself.

“If I come out each and every week and play to my standard, I feel like everything else will just take care of itself. That’s my main thing, like, coming out and playing to my standard, doing whatever I can to control what I can, and not letting up anything. Just being relentless. Just putting everything on me.”

Smith had an up-and-down year in 2019, but he was one of the Bears’ strongest defensive players before he landed on injured reserve with a torn pectoral muscle in Week 14. Smith told reporters that he’s fully recovered from his surgery, and that he’s ready to get back on the field, which at this point looks to be training camp.

“I feel like I’m 100 percent, honestly,” Smith said. “Others may have a different opinion, but I definitely feel like I’m 100 percent and I’m excited for where I’m at right now and I feel like I can pretty much do any and everything.”

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Roquan Smith dubbed Bears’ most promising building block

Bears GM Ryan Pace hasn’t hit on his first-round draft picks, but his best chance comes with ILB Roquan Smith.

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Pace hasn’t managed to hit on his first-round draft picks, but his best chance comes with third-year inside linebacker Roquan Smith.

Smith, a former No. 8 overall pick in 2018, has shown immense promise in his first two seasons. As a rookie, Smith tallied 114 total tackles, five sacks, five passes defensed and one interception.

Bleacher Report believes inside linebacker Roquan Smith is Chicago’s most promising building block, who they dub as “a young, inexpensive player on their rookie deal” that “has yet to realize their full potential.”

After an impressive rookie season in which he tallied 121 tackles, Roquan Smith looked to be on his way to becoming one of the best inside linebackers in the game. However, he got off to a slow start in his second season.

To his credit, Smith rebounded over the season’s second half, and he finished Year 2 with 101 stops, two sacks and an interception.

Smith’s range, athleticism and instincts are all excellent, so it’s a matter of putting it all together in 2020.

While Smith had a slow start to his sophomore season, he was playing his best football before he went down with a torn pectoral muscle against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 14.

“I saw unbelievable growth from him [in 2019],” Bears inside linebackers coach Mark DeLeone said of Smith, per the Chicago Sun-Times‘ Mark Potash. “From the first game to the 13th game, saw growth in him on and off the field. I see a 22-year-old guy who is only going to continue to improve.”

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Kwiatkoski or Trevathan? Which Bears free agent do you want back?

The Bears have some important decisions to make regarding inside linebacker this offseason. Should it be Kwiatkoski or Trevathan?

The Bears have some important decisions to make regarding inside linebacker this offseason. With three inside linebackers set to hit free agency — Nick Kwiatkoski, Danny Trevathan and Kevin Pierre-Louis — Chicago needs to figure out who will be lining up opposite Roquan Smith next season.

When it comes down to it, the Bears need to re-sign either Kwiatkoski or Trevathan to solidify the middle of their linebacker corp. Chicago reportedly will make Kwiatkoski a top free-agent priotity following his impressive season in relief of the injured Trevathan.

But Kwiatkoski will be in high demand for that exact same reason, and the Packers are just one of several teams set to target him in free agency. He’ll require a pretty penny to re-sign, and the Bears are already in a tight bind with their salary cap, especially considering they need to bring in a veteran quarterback.

Ultimately if the Bears can’t afford Kwiatkoski, they could turn to Trevathan, who would be the cheaper option at this point. While Trevathan has proven to be an effective player and leader of this defense, he’s 30 years old with a history of injuries.

Trevathan has missed 16 games since signing with the Bears prior to the 2015 season. Which is where re-signing both Trevathan and Pierre-Louis would be essential.

What do you think Bears fans? Which inside linebacker do you want to see Chicago re-sign?

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