soulman Posted June 3, 2019 Share Posted June 3, 2019 Roquan Smith ranks as a top-10 linebacker in the NFL by Alyssa Barbieri https://bearswire.usatoday.com/2019/06/02/roquan-smith-ranks-as-a-top-10-linebacker-in-the-nfl/ The Chicago Bears are known for their prolific linebackers. Names like **** Butkus, Mike Singletary, Brian Urlacher and Bill George come to mind. The Bears might’ve just found their next great linebacker in Roquan Smith. On the Monday Morning NFL Podcast, experts Andy Benoit and Gary Gramling discussed the top linebackers in the league. These rankings are for traditional inside and outside linebackers only, so pass rushers like Khalil Mack and Von Miller are excluded. MMQB ranked Smith as the sixth-best linebacker in the league, which tied him with the Cowboys’ Jaylon Smith. 10. Anthony Barr, Minnesota, 39 points 9. C.J. Mosley, N.Y. Jets, 48 8. K.J. Wright, Seattle, 54 6. (tie) Roquan Smith, Chicago, 56 6. (tie) Jaylon Smith, Dallas, 56 5. Deion Jones, Atlanta, 58 4. Leighton Vander Esch, Dallas, 65 3. Darius Leonard, Indianapolis, 68 2. Bobby Wagner, Seattle, 76 1. Luke Kuechly, Carolina, 80 (3 first-place votes) Smith, who is entering his second season with the Bears, finished his rookie season with a team-high 121 tackles, five sacks and an interception. “He has the tools, all the skill set and the personality traits to be elite and one of the premier players in his position in the game,” inside linebackers coach Mark DeLeone said. Smith is entering his first full offseason with the Bears, and the word is that he is quickly picking up what new defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano is throwing at him. Fans could be in for something special this season and beyond. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heinz D. Posted June 3, 2019 Share Posted June 3, 2019 18 hours ago, soulman said: Smith is entering his first full offseason with the Bears, and the word is that he is quickly picking up what new defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano is throwing at him. Fans could be in for something special this season and beyond He's already a star, basically. People aren't just fully aware of it yet. Miller will be a star when this season ends. Not sure that lineman who don't produce sacks will ever be considered "stars", but Daniels will probably make the Pro Bowl at center. What a ****in' draft... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yomyyo Posted June 3, 2019 Share Posted June 3, 2019 If offered the chance, I’m not sure that I’d take any of the higher ranked players before Ro. Like Heinz, I think he’s going to be a huge star. If we had an outrageous prediction thread, mine would be that Ro will be defensive player of the year. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heinz D. Posted June 4, 2019 Share Posted June 4, 2019 1 hour ago, yomyyo said: If offered the chance, I’m not sure that I’d take any of the higher ranked players before Ro. Like Heinz, I think he’s going to be a huge star. If we had an outrageous prediction thread, mine would be that Ro will be defensive player of the year. Not sure that would even be an outrageous prediction... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugashane Posted June 4, 2019 Share Posted June 4, 2019 I remember wanting to trade up to 30-32 for Jaylon Smith. I was HUGE on him. I'm happy to see he healed up well and is back to becoming the star I thought he could be. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HuskieBear Posted June 4, 2019 Share Posted June 4, 2019 nobody mention that 2 of the players above him on that list were drafted after him (Leonard and LVE) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJ_11 Posted June 4, 2019 Share Posted June 4, 2019 5 hours ago, HuskieBear said: nobody mention that 2 of the players above him on that list were drafted after him (Leonard and LVE) Yeah what a draft for middle linebackers 2018 is looking like. Just happy one of them is our's, not bothered where they were drafted, I love me some Roquan - if he continues on the upward curve he was on last year, and with a full off-season behind him, he's got the tools to be one of the best defensive players in the League in 2019. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pigsooie5 Posted June 4, 2019 Share Posted June 4, 2019 At this point, there isn’t a single ILB in the league is take over Roquan moving forward. And that includes both his draft class peers. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soulman Posted June 4, 2019 Author Share Posted June 4, 2019 IMHO just as Brian Urlacher was the ideal MLB for Lovie's "Tampa Two" defense Roquan Smith is an ideal ILB for the Bears current 3-4. Even though he's far smaller than Urlacher from what I've seen Smith still has that same ability to be used almost like a Safety at times both dropping into coverage or rushing on a delayed blitz. Even at just 225-230lbs he brings that same kind of ability Mack has to covert speed into power. If we can get as lucky with Iggy ascending as a replacement for Trevathan as Trevathan once did himself we'll maintain a very strong presence at ILB for many years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SLCbear Posted June 4, 2019 Share Posted June 4, 2019 How is Vander Esch ahead of Roquan ??? That's ridiculous ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heinz D. Posted June 4, 2019 Share Posted June 4, 2019 18 hours ago, HuskieBear said: nobody mention that 2 of the players above him on that list were drafted after him (Leonard and LVE) Not sure that matters. Also not sure they're actually better than Smith. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dll2000 Posted June 5, 2019 Share Posted June 5, 2019 (edited) I made a short you tube video on Roquan. It may appear twice because I kept hitting publish and nothing was happening. Enjoy and subscribe. Maybe one day I can add ads. Edited June 5, 2019 by dll2000 typo 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BACK2MACKSACK Posted June 5, 2019 Share Posted June 5, 2019 Considering that he wasn't able to enter the league running with the contract dispute, he was a flat-out stud. He was able to show his skill in all aspects of defense including pass-rushing. Other than the Cowboys, the Bears might have the best middle linebacker duo in the NFL that can be liken to combo of P. Willis and N. Bowman in Frisco. If there was one skill that he could work on is being more consistent in the run game. One of the things that made Urlacher great was that during his time here we've really limited the other team on their running. Of course there was the occasional Adrian Peterson monster rushing game but we would really dominate the running game on defense. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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