Roquan Smith is a talented player. There’s no question about that. He didn’t get to be the #8 overall pick by accident. The Chicago Bears see a bright future in him. With that said, there are consequences to every decision you make in life. While Smith has allowed his agents to play hardball with the Bears in regards to his rookie contract, there’s a growing likelihood it may end up costing him on the field.
Head coach Matt Nagy remains confident that he will sign eventually. That said, it doesn’t appear like he’ll be required to coddle the first round pick whenever he arrives. In fact, it might be possible that Smith ends up sitting on the bench to start his NFL career. Sound baffling right? Well, that’s partially his own fault because, in his absence, veteran linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski has taken full advantage.
The third-year linebacker is having the best training camp of his career. Nagy stated from the moment he was hired that players had to earn their way into a job on this team. He sounded fully prepared to reward Kwiatkoski for his efforts even if it meant benching Smith.
“I told you this in the beginning. You gotta earn your spot. When you’re out here, that guy Kwik, right now, is playing really well. You saw the pick today that he had. He’s thumping people in the run game. I love his mentality. He didn’t blink when we drafted Roquan. He stepped right on in there and he put the horse blinders on and went after it and that’s where we’re at right now. So I’m excited for him, I’m proud of him and I want to just keep that thing going.”
Matt Nagy will set a good example by giving the job to Kwiatkoski
One of the great things about this decision is it sets a precedent and sends a good message. It doesn’t matter if you’re drafted high or not. If you practice hard and perform, you have a legitimate chance to start for this football team. That’s a great way to attract talented players in free agency. They tend to go to teams that offer the best opportunity.
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People are talking about Smith being a trend-setter with his contract dispute, but Kwiatkoski may actually be doing the same on the field. He continues to make impact plays in every practice including multiple interceptions of Mitch Trubisky.
Mitchell Trubisky throws his first interception of the day to Nick Kwiatkoski, who probably would return it for a TD in a real game. pic.twitter.com/weSIbTnbru
— Jacob Infante (@jacobinfante24) July 28, 2018
He’s flashed quite a bit whenever he’s gotten onto the field in the past two seasons. He started a combined 13 games in 2016 and 2017. Over that span, he made a total of 87 tackles, collected three sacks and forced two fumbles. People have wondered what might happen if and when he finally got the opportunity to start full-time.
Through a fortunate stroke of luck and his own hard work and perseverance, it appears Bears fans are going to get that chance. The way things are going Kwiatkoski may be too far ahead for Smith to possibly catch up before the season begins in September.
