After being a sidekick in 2018, will Roquan Smith step up as a play caller in 2019?
When Roquan Smith was drafted eighth overall, the expectations for his career in Chicago soared to sky-high levels. All of a sudden his name became one that is going to be lumped in with Brian Urlacher moving forward.
However, after holding out to start his career, he did not get off to the best footing. Smith resolved his issues and suited up for some preseason practices before being a reserve in the season opener and starting from there.
Still, the lack of progression in his play during the offseason hindered the heights he was able to take as a rookie. It did not hinder his longterm progress, though as Smith had an excellent rookie season, racking up 121 tackles, eight for loss with five sacks. However, he did not win Defensive Rookie of the Year-he lost to a linebacker-and he did not call plays-Danny Trevathan did.
So while Smith’s ceiling is sky high, he still has some making up to do this offseason. With a full offseason with the Bears, is he ready to take that step forward?
He should be. Not only does he have a season of digesting an NFL playbook, he is working with a new defensive coordinator. Vic Fangio had a lot of faith in Danny Trevathan from years of working together.
This is not to say that Chuck Pagano does not trust Trevathan, but rather Smith and Trevathan are starting on similar ground to pick up the defense.
Trevathan is a great asset, but if the Bears want to go to more sub-package football, and take one of their linebackers off of the field it should be Trevathan. On top of that, Trevathan is a free agent at the end of 2019. If there were ever a time for Smith to pick up play calling duties, it would be now.
Had Smith put in a full offseason, he may have eventually taken the play-calling duties from Trevathan with Fangio at the helm. With Pagano, and the ability to build a relationship between the two that goes well beyond this year, it would be a surprise if Roquan Smith did not call plays this season.