Did Chicago Bears sell Roquan Smith at the right time?

The Chicago Bears traded Roquan Smith in a move that has the fan base pretty split. Smith was a former top-ten pick, and while he did not quite live up to that expectation, he has been a reliable asset on the team.

The Bears had a chance to extend Smith this summer, they gave him an offer they thought was fair, and Smith said that he was worthy of more. Clearly, Smith did not prove that he was to the team as they traded him halfway through the season.

Chicago Bears were smart not to extend Roquan Smith

While Smith has been good, and that has made fans excited to sign him, it may have been for the best that they did not. One thing that recent history has shown is that linebackers do not age very well, especially the ones who play a lot in their early years.

Since 2019, the biggest free agent signings at linebacker have been C.J. Mosley, Kwon Alexander, Joe Schobert, Kyle Van Noy, and Cory Littleton. Mosley is the only one still on the team that signed him, and Schobert is barely in the NFL after signing a big deal just three years ago.

On the flip side, teams extending their own has not worked out, either. Deion Jones, Jaylon Smith, Anthony Barr, Myles Jack, and Zach Cunningham are the names extended by their own team to big money. None of them are on the team that extended them. Every single linebacker contract was a bad decision. Shaq Leonard and Fred Warner are still TBD after their big deals, but Leonard has hardly played this season for the Colts. That has to be alarming and sitting right in the face of Eberflus, who once coached Leonard.

It is easy to sit here and say that you know that Smith is different, and will not be like the rest. However, that is what everyone said when they signed on. Nobody thought it was a bad decision at the time because these players had their best season.

However, for one reason or the other, linebacker play can be up and down. They take the most hits, so injuries strike. They get asked to defend small slots, and big tight ends, so their coverage varies based on the opponent more than their own play.

Another interesting note is that first-round linebackers rarely work out. Below is a list of each one. If you factor in that Micah Parsons is now a pass rusher, the list just shows how volatile the position is.

Even in the case of Kuechly, the best name on the list above, we saw him retire early. It is not smart to invest anything significant in linebackers because the position can come and go. Guys like Nicholas Morrow can hold things down when they are healthy at a reasonable price, and the team can find players in the middle rounds who will be able to hold up during their rookie contract seasons.

Roquan Smith has not fallen off yet, but the odds are that he will have down years, or get injured in the coming years. When you add in that he is good, but not elite when it comes to turnovers, tackles for loss, and game-changing plays, it makes sense why it was hard for the team to invest significantly in him.