Roquan Smith

Roquan Daevon Smith (born April 8, 1997) is an American football linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL).

He played college football at Georgia.

Smith became the first Georgia BullDog to win the Butkus Award.

Smith was introduced to organized football at the age of six.

In the years to follow his youth football coaches had to keep a copy of his birth certificate on file to dispute claims that he was too old to play.

He attended Macon County High School in Montezuma, Georgia, where he played football for the Bulldogs.

He originally committed to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) to play college football but changed his commitment to the University of Georgia.

While at the University of Georgia, Smith played college football under head coaches Mark Richt and Kirby Smart.

Smith was also the team's first linebacker to achieve the feat since Lance Briggs in 2008.

The Bears made it back to the playoffs, for the second time in Smith's career.

As a true freshman at Georgia in 2015, Smith played in 12 games and recorded 20 tackles.

As a sophomore in 2016, he started 10 of 13 games, recording 95 tackles.

In 2017, Smith was named MVP of the SEC Championship Game, as well as SEC Defensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press.

He became the first Georgia BullDog to win the Butkus Award.

Smith decided to forgo his final year of eligibility and entered the 2018 NFL draft.

Smith was selected by the Chicago Bears with the eighth overall pick in the first-round of the 2018 NFL draft.

His contract signing was significantly delayed due to contract disputes between the Bears and Smith's agency CAA Football over language in his rookie contract stating whether his guaranteed money would be reclaimed by the team if he was suspended due to the NFL's new rule outlawing contact leading with the helmet.

CAA argued for wording that would protect Smith's guaranteed earnings, while the Bears preferred for decisions to be determined by the league, a situation that was exacerbated by skepticism surrounding the rule and the frequency of tackling in Smith's role.

On August 14, the Bears signed Smith to a fully guaranteed four-year, $18.47 million contract that included a signing bonus of $11.51 million.

He was the last first-round pick in his draft class to sign with his team.

In his NFL debut in Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers on NBC Sunday Night Football, Smith recorded a sack on the Packers' quarterback DeShone Kizer on his first career snap.

In Week 6 against the Miami Dolphins, Smith made 13 tackles.

In Week 9 against the Buffalo Bills, Smith made 13 tackles as the Bears won the game 41–9.

In Week 10 against the Detroit Lions, he made 10 tackles and sacked quarterback Matthew Stafford, while the Bears won 34–22, while also leading the team in tackles in both of these weeks.

In Week 12 against the Lions, he made 11 tackles and sacked quarterback Stafford in a 23–16 win.

In Week 14 against the Los Angeles Rams, Smith made six tackles and recorded his first career interception off Jared Goff and returned the ball 22 yards to the four-yard line as the Bears won 15–6.

In Week 15 against the Green Bay Packers, Smith made 10 tackles in a 24–17 win.

In Week 16 against the San Francisco 49ers, Smith made nine tackles and sacked Nick Mullens in a 14–9 win.

On December 30, during a Week 17 game against the Minnesota Vikings, Smith had six tackles as the Bears defeated the Vikings 24–10.

He received an overall grade of 67.4 from Pro Football Focus in 2018, which ranked him as the 39th highest grade among all qualifying linebackers, and was selected as Pro Bowl alternate.

In Week 2 against the Denver Broncos, Smith recorded a team high 13 tackles as the Bears won 16–14.

In Week 11 against the Rams on Sunday Night Football, Smith recorded a team high 11 tackles and intercepted a pass thrown by Jared Goff in the 17–7 loss.

In Week 13 against the Lions on Thanksgiving Day, Smith recorded a team high 15 tackles and sacked rookie quarterback David Blough twice in the 24–20 win.

On January 6, 2019, in the Bears' 16–15 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in a Wild Card playoff game, Smith led the team with seven tackles and made an interception off Nick Foles.

Smith finished the season with 121 tackles, five sacks, five passes defended, and one interception.

On December 9, 2019, Smith was placed on injured reserve after suffering a torn pectoral in Week 14.

In Week 9 against the Tennessee Titans, Smith recorded a team-high 11 tackles and sacked Ryan Tannehill once during the 24–17 loss.

In Week 10 against the Vikings on Monday Night Football, Smith recorded a team-high 14 tackles and sacked Kirk Cousins once during the 19–13 loss.

In Week 14 against the Houston Texans, Smith led the team with 12 tackles and two sacks during the 36–7 win.

During the Bears' 41–17 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 16, Smith intercepted Mike Glennon twice to become the first Bears player with multiple interceptions in a game since Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in 2019.