Only one person was unhappy when the news dropped that Chicago Bears first round pick Roquan Smith was finally going to sign his rookie contract. That was fellow inside linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski. The third-year veteran had been presented a major opportunity with Smith's holdout to grab the starting job opposite Danny Trevathan.
All things considered, he probably had the best training camp of his career. He made a lot of big plays and looked solid in his first game action against the Cincinnati Bengals last week. As the holdout continued many were settling into the idea that Kwiatkoski not only would start in Green Bay come September but had earned the right to.
Then Smith signed his deal. Suddenly there's still three weeks to go before the regular season begins. There's a lot of ground to make up, but Smith was a first round pick for a reason. It's not a stretch to think he could use that time to close the gap on Kwiatkoski, stealing the job out from under him.
Yet there's a practical reason why this is beyond the simple draft status.
Roquan Smith can do something vital that Kwiatkoski can't
The NFL of today is a passing league. No division exemplifies that reality more than the NFC North. Chicago will have to face three rivals in 2018 that now employ three QBs who have gone to the Pro Bowl at least once in Aaron Rodgers, Matthew Stafford, and Kirk Cousins. These are throwing teams and they will be looking for any sign of weakness to that effect. Too often in recent history, the Bears defense has been particularly vulnerable in the middle of the field, often giving up big plays in that area. Especially on third down. A big reason for that was having inside linebackers who couldn't consistently play coverage against running backs or tight ends. It's not a coincidence that Green Bay just got done signing Jimmy Graham in free agency. They know they're playing Chicago in the opener and recognized the weakness. What could the Bears do to counter it? Find a linebacker who can help erase it. Few in college football were better at such an assignment than their first round pick.Put it another way?
Kwiatkoski hasn't shown he can be a factor in this department. He's started 13 games since being drafted by the Bears. In those games, opposing tight ends caught a total of 61 passes for 637 yards and four touchdowns. That averages out to 4.69 catches for 49 yards per game. Kwiatkoski has a total of two passes defended in those games. Both were against the eventual 2-14 San Francisco 49ers. He just can't do the things Smith can.Facts are facts. Unless an injury gets in the way, there's just no seeing the Bears keeping this sort of asset on the bench when they have to go against Rodgers next month up at Lambeau. Maybe they stick to their guns and give Kwiatkoski his shot, but it's hard to see that happening now.
