NFL: Roquan Smith requests trade from Chicago Bears

One of the NFL’s premier young defensive players, Roquan Smith, has requested a trade from the Chicago Bears. He has been in ‘negotiations’ with the Bears’ brass on a new contract but is requesting this trade due to a lack of actual negotiating. Apparently, the Bears have given him a series of ‘take it or leave it’ offers that do not properly compensate Smith and the player is now taking the next step to securing his money.

Roquan is a 25-year-old linebacker who was a top-10 pick by the Bears five years ago. He is one of the premier tacklers in the NFL and he lead the league with 163 tackles last season. Roquan is seen as one of the best linebackers in the league and there will be no shortage of suitors for his services, even if he wants a substantial pay raise. He has made the All-Pro second team in each of the past two seasons.

The Bears have a new general manager and head coach, but it appears like it’s the same old Bears. They have been criticized for their draft and free agency moves this offseason, and it doesn’t appear like they are setting up Sophomore quarterback Justin Fields to succeed. If they lose Roquan, their defense will be barren as he is the best player on their team. It’s unfortunate for Chicago fans, but not anything they aren’t used to.

Right now the Bears are -150 with Bovada to finish with less than 6.5 wins this season. Before this news, that was a good bet as there is quite a dearth of talent on the Chicago roster. Those odds will only shorten if Smith leaves, so now might be a good time to take that wager. The Bears have done nothing to improve on last season’s 6-11 record and they should be even worse this year. While this situation is unfolding, it looks like both sides won’t budge and they could be in for an ugly breakup.

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