People love to say the NFL is a copycat league. That may sound cliche but it’s true. If you don’t figure out why something works for certain teams and figure out how to employ it yourself, you’re a step behind. Teams that are a step behind don’t win championships. This can also be applied to the draft. Players who are a step behind in how to gain favor with teams won’t be drafted high. Georgia linebacker Roquan Smith learned his lesson well.
One thing that has become clear about this Chicago Bears regime under Ryan Pace is they want players who want to be Bears. Matt Nagy likely delivered the decisive blow in his interview when he stated at the end he really wanted to coach Chicago. However, the OG of this methodology is their young quarterback Mitch Trubisky.
Nobody delivered a masterstroke in the “I want to be a Bear” arena than him. It took place before the 2017 draft when Pace tasked him with setting up a dinner meeting.
“Pace also ordered Trubisky to keep the meeting top secret, so as not to tip off anyone — not any Tar Heels coaches or teammates, not any other NFL execs or agents, not even a campus meter maid — to the Bears’ interest.
Trubisky took the directive and pieced things together.
Before Pace and his cohorts arrived on campus, the Bears GM had a text. Dinner at 7 p.m.
The venue: Bin 54, a top steakhouse in North Carolina’s Triangle region. And to keep the gathering covert, Trubisky made the reservation for six under an alias: James McMahon.”
Genius. Pace loved that move and further cemented his desire to make Trubisky a Bear. It would seem Smith, who could be a target for them at #8 overall, may have taken a page from that playbook.
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Roquan Smith knows his football history, especially his Bears history
Smith spoke with Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune recently about his pre-draft experience and how his meeting went with the Bears. He seemed to love the idea of reuniting with Leonard Floyd, a former Georgia teammate and also pairing with Danny Trevathan. He sees no problem with playing in a 3-4, having done it through most of college.
When it came to playing for the Bears franchise itself? He made a rather interesting comment.
If the Bears draft Smith, he would enter the building with a better idea than a lot of young players of the Bears’ rich tradition at of the linebacker.
“Dick Butkus, Brian Urlacher, Mike Singletary, Bill George, Lance Briggs. Lot of guys,” Smith said off the top of his head. “I am a football junkie, so I know a lot about the game and a lot of history.”
Being a smart guy in the Xs and Os is one thing for the Bears. Yet to rattle off that many names, particularly Bill George who is one most people forget? That’s damn impressive. Everybody knows how much this franchise embraces its history and tradition. Smith almost certainly kept that in mind when he met them. A clever tactic indeed. Was it enough to win their favor?
We’ll find out if he’s still on the board when they go on the clock.
