Chicago Bears fans want Roquan Smith to be back on the field
Linebacker Roquan Smith has been on the PUP list since last Wednesday as he holds out to negotiate a new contract. The move has allowed Smith to be with the Chicago Bears during camp while not participating with the team during practice. Reports so far indicate there isn’t a resolution to the holdout coming soon and one analyst isn’t sure the Bears should be quick to give in to Smith’s demands.
Smith wants elite money. Understandable. Last week, Bears CB Jaylon Johnson said Smith was the leader on defense. Many Bears fans are eager for general manager Ryan Poles to hand Smith the cash he needs to be happy.
Eric Eager with PFF took a look at some of Smith’s advanced statistics since coming into the league. He’s not entirely convinced Smith is worth the elite money he wants to be paid now.
He Tweeted a thread about Smith’s weakness regarding biting on play action and why he might not work in head coach Matt Eberflus’s defensive scheme.
this is not really characteristic of an Eberflus linebacker, as you can see here with Shaquille Leonard and Bobby Okereke: pic.twitter.com/5alXSgHZhb
— Eric Eager 📊🏈 (@PFF_Eric) August 3, 2022
Usually players that bite on play action make up for it (not really, since pass > run) by being aggressive in the run game. However, Smith's Ground Covered Over Expected in the run game (positive is good) is roughly average: pic.twitter.com/6XXWKOz9vS
— Eric Eager 📊🏈 (@PFF_Eric) August 3, 2022
this tradeoff is very apparent in last year's Colts linebackers, where Leonard and Okereke conceded ground in the run game in companion with not doing so in the passing game: pic.twitter.com/PnBSXfiALN
— Eric Eager 📊🏈 (@PFF_Eric) August 3, 2022
here's the tradeoff among all linebackers during the NGS era.
In summary, Eberflus' defenses have favored linebackers in the upper left corner recently, whereas Smith has been more down and to the right. pic.twitter.com/sgIMkIZPcp
— Eric Eager 📊🏈 (@PFF_Eric) August 3, 2022
Can Smith adjust? Sure he can. Leonard and Okereke clearly have. Do you want to give him the bag prior to seeing if does? That's a good question.
— Eric Eager 📊🏈 (@PFF_Eric) August 3, 2022
Roquan Smith is important to the Bears’ defense
Smith will have some things to polish up in the new defensive scheme. (Unfortunately, he’s not getting the reps he needs right now in camp to be better prepared due to the holdout.) But this style of play is something someone as talented as Smith can master with repetition.
What will be harder for the Bears to replace with Smith’s absence is his tackling ability. Smith has made a lot (348) of solo tackles in his first four years. He joined HOF Ray Lewis as the only two linebackers in NFL history to have over 300 tackles and 30 for a loss in two seasons.
The Bears don’t need to offer Roquan Smith the moon right now
Roquan Smith may be an avid tackler, but the Bears can call Smith’s bluff this season. The Bears aren’t going to be competing for a playoff run this season as they’re in rebuild mode. It’s more important to see if he can make a good transition into the new scheme.
It might shock Bears fans (who don’t watch other NFL teams’ games and haven’t seen anything else than what resembles a late 70s-to-mid-80s style of football the team has been permanently stuck in) but linebackers are not as important as they used to be.
The Bears can save money by not overpaying at linebacker and use the cap space, if need be, to acquire more important pieces in the next few years. That would be better as it would make the Bears more competitive long term, even if it would mean parting with a fan favorite.
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