How would you rank the Chicago Bears 90-man roster heading into training camp?
Chicago Bears Ranking 90-86 85-81 80-76 75-71 70-66 65-61 60-56 55-50
50-46 45-41 40-36 35-31 30-26 25-21 20-16 15-11
10. Roquan Smith
A player who has never touched an NFL field cracking the top ten of most valuable players on his team? It can happen. Heck, Roquan Smith has every chance to finish the season higher on the list. It may not come this season, but in the near future, Smith is likely to be the top defensive player on the team.
The fact of the matter is that Roquan Smith is a very easy evaluation. It is easy to see where he will find success, and where he may struggle. Where he finds success is going to get him on the field immediately.
His ability to read and react and maintain game speed throughout his motion is the toughest thing to translate to the NFL and it arguably his greatest strength. When things speed up, he speeds up.
He is a bit undersized and can give up some yards after the catch. However, with an athletic Danny Trevathan beside him, the team should be able to keep him in good positions when it comes to sticking his head into the box and defending bigger tight ends.
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Trevathan also should help Roquan Smith in his ability to call the plays. Do not be surprised if this is in the arsenal of Smith by the end of the season. So yes, he has proven nothing yet. However, he has starter expectations with the plans to slowly become the leader of the defense. Can he do this all in year one? We will see.