The question of how Roquan Smith’s holdout would affect the chemistry of the Chicago Bears locker room have been answered. It strengthened it
The Roquan Smith holdout was annoying and likely led to zero on the field repercussions. However, one myth that needs to be busted is the idea that Smith holding out is going to look selfish in the eyes of his teammates. Far too many times I saw commenters bringing this up.
“His teammates are out there working so hard, and what has he done?” Arguments about how selfish he looks into their eyes, and how he is going to be able to adjust back into the locker room after missing valuable time with his teammates were brought up.
The fact of the matter is that the players understood where he was coming from in his holdout. They are in his seat when they negotiate contracts. They know how hard it is to hold out when practice reps Smith is losing practice reps. But they also understand holding your ground.
Linebacker and running mate with Roquan Smith Danny Trevathan was asked his opinion on the Roquan Smith hold out. Here is part of what Trevathan said.
Bears LB Danny Trevathan is proud of Roquan Smith for standing up for what he thought was right and thinks more players are going to do the same moving forward bc of the new rules. Trevathan actually said on his next contract there will be some fine tuning he’s going to ask for.
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) August 15, 2018
You can catch the entire audio on the Hoge and Jahns podcast.
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Trevathan said that he told Smith that he only has one chance to make sure everything is right before signing that deal. Once he signs, he is signed. He told Smith to be patient with it and make sure that he got the deal he was comfortable with.
Danny Trevathan wants to win just as bad as every fan in the comments section. Let’s get real; he wants to win more; it is his body going through the physical effects.
However, he understands that the issues at hand when it comes to the business side of football. He realizes that in Smith standing up for what he feels is right, he is setting a precedent for not only future rookies, not just future linebackers, such as Trevathan but future players across the landscape of the league.
So when you get mad about a player holding out or missing some practice time in a contract dispute, remember, most of his teammates understand why he is doing this and is on his side. Roquan Smith was embraced readily upon his return and likely stands in an even higher light because of his holdout.