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The Chicago Bears are on the verge of losing yet another key asset of their defense, with linebacker Roquan Smith publicly announcing that he has demanded a trade out of Windy City. Smith appears to have grown tired of discussing a potential extension deal with the Bears, and now he wants out.
It also did not take long after his statement before Twitter got flooded with reactions from Bears fans, who have taken this as an opportunity to lash out at the team's management.
This franchise man. Twenty-plus years of nonstop bad hires and decisions https://t.co/ADVBfLODQL
— keep on rockin in the free world (@lib_crusher) August 9, 2022
Ryan Poles’ first couple of months as GM have been a disaster. There’s no other way to put it. https://t.co/7xjJ9y7pUR
— Kyle W (@K_Williamsmedia) August 9, 2022
The longer this Roquan Smith situation drug out, the more likely this situation was to happen.
Without an agent, Roquan is at the front line of the negotiations & that’s not always the best place to be.
I understand tearing down but this one just doesn’t seem smart. #Bears
— Aaron Leming (@AaronLemingNFL) August 9, 2022
All I can do is pray this is a negotiation tactic. Losing Smith would be beyond devastating for this team.
— Alex Patt (@chifanpatt2) August 9, 2022
Does Ryan Poles know what he’s doing or?
— ChiCitySports.Com (@ChiCitySports23) August 9, 2022
https://t.co/23ml1ydEtq pic.twitter.com/eDDsIUKdZr
— Russell Dorsey (@Russ_Dorsey1) August 9, 2022
https://twitter.com/Zack_Pearson/status/1556987216337031169
Bring back Ryan Pace. https://t.co/R8OVOEiiay
— Joe Ostrowski (@JoeOstrowski) August 9, 2022
Roquan Smith isn't just another piece of the Bears' defense. He is arguably the team's best player under control right now on the stop unit. If the Bears ultimately lose Roquan Smith this offseason, that would be two incredibly talented pass rushers that Ryan Poles have just successfully shipped away in just a matter of months. Back in March, the Bears traded Khalil Mack to the Los Angeles Chargers for a 2023 sixth-round pick and a 2022 second-rounder that turned into safety Jaquan Brisker.
Roquan Smith has been on a holdout in Bears training camp and it doesn't look like he will be there any time soon — or at all even. Having said that, Bears defensive coordinator Alan Williams appears to be prepared for the scenario where his group won't have Smith, per Mark Potash of the Chicago Sun-Times.
‘‘You gotta play with whoever you have,’’ Williams said. ‘‘That’s reality in the NFL. If you spend your entire time thinking about what you don’t have . . . you’ll be behind the eight-ball. And that’s not what we’re gonna do. We’re not gonna make excuses and reasons why we can’t. We’re gonna find reasons why we can.’’
Smith, who was selected by the Bears eighth overall in the 2018 NFL Draft, has career totals of 14.0 sacks and 524 combined tackles across 61 games.
