The praise for new Chicago Bears first round pick Roquan Smith is widespread. Most draft experts believe GM Ryan Pace got it exactly right. He secured a ready-made star out of Georgia. He’s a new breed of inside linebacker. One built less for the slug-it-out style of yesteryear and more for the high demands of range and coverage of space. Still, the true experts might have a different take.
Perhaps the only men most qualified to judge good inside linebackers are those who’ve been good inside linebackers themselves. No team has a greater legacy of this type than the Bears. Their run of middle linebackers over the past several decades is legendary. No two are more revered than Dick Butkus and Mike Singletary.
The two Hall of Famers were on hand for the festivities during the draft. Singletary had the honor of announcing the Bears’ first second round pick. Both took time to speak with Dan Pompei of The Athletic about their impressions of the newest Bears linebacker. What they had to say was rather surprising.
Butkus and Singletary see greatness ahead for Roquan Smith
Butkus already had knowledge of Smith even before the draft began. This was because the Georgia standout was the 2017 Butkus Award winner, given to the best linebacker in college football. They met at the Rose Bowl before the Bulldogs knocked off Oklahoma to reach the national championship game. Butkus was thrilled for the young man, and for the Bears.
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“Once he was drafted, he received a congratulatory text from Butkus. “He texted me back saying he’s proud to be a part of the Bears linebacker tradition. He’s a good one and I’m happy for the Bears.
He’s kind of a new breed — smaller but faster,” Butkus said. “But he can handle himself. He was a hell of a linebacker at Georgia, which is why he won [the Butkus award]. He covers a lot of territory and he delivers a blow when he arrives.”
High as that praise was, Singletary came across as an even bigger fan. It’s clear he saw visions of himself in Smith. The questions about his size and the obvious desire the young man played with.
“There is something about the Bears and middle linebackers,” Singletary said. “I think he’s perfect, a perfect pick. They needed an inside guy. He’s a guy who can run. He’s a leader. I think he’s going to be special.
Roquan is plenty big,” Singletary said. “It’s all about the heart. Always had been, always will be.”
There’s something important to remember here. In their entire history, the Bears have drafted seven linebackers in the first round. Five of them ended up going to the Pro Bowl. Only two of them though were pure middle linebackers. That was Butkus and Brian Urlacher, both Hall of Famers. This is quite the legacy Smith is stepping into and it doesn’t look like the expectations phase him in the slightest.
