{"id":46584,"date":"2022-08-16T03:05:49","date_gmt":"2022-08-16T03:05:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/how-the-bears-unresolved-contract-situation-with-roquan-smith-just-got-more-complicated\/"},"modified":"2022-08-16T03:05:49","modified_gmt":"2022-08-16T03:05:49","slug":"how-the-bears-unresolved-contract-situation-with-roquan-smith-just-got-more-complicated","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/how-the-bears-unresolved-contract-situation-with-roquan-smith-just-got-more-complicated\/","title":{"rendered":"How the Bears&#8217; unresolved contract situation with Roquan Smith just got more complicated"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>In the latest development in a simmering impasse between the Chicago Bears and Pro Bowl linebacker Roquan Smith, the situation just got worse and more complicated.<\/p>\n<p>That&#8217;s in the wake of the NFL Management Council <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AaronWilson_NFL\/status\/1559300696612167680?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1559300696612167680%7Ctwgr%5E4eca3dcab4be43353d69c331a2dee08c3fd29d92%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.profootballnetwork.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D267003action%3Dedit\" target=\"_blank\">sending a memo<\/a> to all teams alleging that an individual not licensed as an agent by the NFL Players Association has been in contact with other teams regarding a potential trade for Smith.<\/p>\n<div class=\"profo-nfl-podcasts-opt-in\" id=\"profo-551113704\">\n<figure id=\"attachment_263997\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-263997\" style=\"width: 780px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"lazyload wp-image-263997 size-full\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Draft-Kit-Dont-be-a-Loser-Web_-desktop_-780-x-200.jpg?resize=780%2C200&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Fantasy Football Draft Kit Splash Name\" width=\"780\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Draft-Kit-Dont-be-a-Loser-Web_-desktop_-780-x-200.jpg?resize=780%2C200&#038;ssl=1 780w, https:\/\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Draft-Kit-Dont-be-a-Loser-Web_-desktop_-780-x-200-300x77.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Draft-Kit-Dont-be-a-Loser-Web_-desktop_-780-x-200-768x197.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Draft-Kit-Dont-be-a-Loser-Web_-desktop_-780-x-200-696x178.jpg 696w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 780px) 100vw, 780px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"\/><\/noscript><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-263997\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Save your draft.  Save your team.  win money.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span id=\"NFL-takes-issue-with-Roquan-Smiths-advisor\">NFL takes issue with Roquan Smith&#8217;s advisor<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The memo stated that the individual is Saint Omni.  Omni is a veteran financial advisor who has advised other NFL players who have represented themselves without an agent.  Players are allowed to receive financial advice in contract talks by outside advisors, as Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson is doing without a formal agent.<\/p>\n<p>The memo stated: \u201cThat a person by the name of Saint Omni, who is not an NFLPA certified agent, is contacting clubs indicating that he is representing Roquan Smith, who is under contract to the Chicago Bears.  Mr.  Omni is prohibited from negotiating player contracts or discussing potential trades on behalf of any NFL player or prospective player or assisting in or advising with respect to such negotiations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And the memo reminded all teams about the rules regarding talking to any non-agents, or other representatives of a player, including agents.<\/p>\n<p>If it was the Bears who informed the NFL that they had a problem with trade discussions, formal or informal, being conducted by Smith&#8217;s advisor, that obviously is going to be detrimental to the relationship between the team and Smith&#8217;s camp.<\/p>\n<h3><span id=\"What-are-the-rules-about-trade-discussions\">What are the rules about trade discussions?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>\u201cUnless a prospective club has received written permission from the employer club, entering into discussions with a player or his agent concerning your club&#8217;s interest in acquiring the player via trade or otherwise is a violation of the Anti-Tampering Policy,\u201d the memo stated.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUnder no circumstances should a prospective club rely upon any written or oral representation by a player or his agent that he has received permission to enter into any discussions for a trade or contract.  Nor should a prospective club rely upon a letter from the employer club to the agent or player granting such permission since employer clubs typically reserve the right to withdraw permission at any time, and may have already done so.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWritten permission must be received directly from the employer club.  Any employer electing to grant permission to a player or his representative to seek a trade with another club, whether or not such permission extends to entering into contract negotiations in conjunction with a trade may contact the Management Council regarding appropriate language to preserve the employer club&#8217;s rights .<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUnder no circumstance should an employer grant oral permission to a player or his representative to see a trade or to enter into contract negotiations with another club.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3><span id=\"Smith-has-already-requested-a-trade\">Smith has already requested a trade<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Smith, due $9 million this year in the final year of his rookie contract and previously represented by Todd France, is definitely due for a major increase in pay.<\/p>\n<p>The Bears and Smith were already far apart in contract negotiations due to their offer being backloaded, according to league sources, with a lot of the compensation coming later on in the contract and it also containing de-escalator clauses not normally included in major deals.<\/p>\n<p>Smith, who has formally requested a trade, wants to become the highest-paid linebacker in the NFL and exceed Indianapolis Colts linebacker Shaquille Leonard&#8217;s five-year, $99.2 million contract signed last year that includes $52.5 million guaranteed.<\/p>\n<p>Smith isn&#8217;t practicing, in a classic \u201chold-in,\u201d that has become the trend in NFL contract disputes.  He was recently activated by the team.<\/p>\n<p>Whether the gap can be bridged is hard to say, but it&#8217;s not looking good at the moment.  One league source predicted this dispute will go all the way up to and likely into the season.<\/p>\n<p>What&#8217;s not in question are Smith&#8217;s skills.  He&#8217;s an excellent linebacker who has recorded 524 career tackles, five interceptions, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and 14 sacks in 61 career games since being drafted eighth overall out of Georgia in 2018.<\/p>\n<p>Smith is a hard-hitting, versatile, athletic linebacker who isn&#8217;t currently being compensated at a level that reflects his status as one of the top defensive players in the NFL.  That can change, but the Bears and Smith have to get on the same page for that goal to be accomplished.<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"What-the-Bears-are-saying\">What the Bears are saying<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Bears general manager Ryan Poles recently weighed in on the Smith situation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI&#8217;ll double down on what I&#8217;ve said before.  My feelings for Roquan haven&#8217;t changed at all,\u201d said Poles, who was hired this offseason after working for the Kansas City Chiefs previously.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think he&#8217;s a very good football player.  I love the kid.  I love what he&#8217;s done on the field, which makes me really disappointed with where we&#8217;re at right now.  I thought we&#8217;d be in a better situation, to be completely honest with you.  In terms of our philosophy in the front office, I&#8217;ve always believed and always will that we take care of our homegrown talent.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe share them.  We take care of them and we take everyone for what they&#8217;ve done and what they can become in the future.  And with this situation, we&#8217;ve showed respect from a very early time frame, and with that said, there&#8217;s record-setting pieces of this contract that I thought was going to show him the respect he deserves, and obviously, that hasn&#8217;t been the case.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This has rapidly become a frustration, and a battle of wills between the Bears&#8217; front office and one of the better players to play for Chicago in recent years.<\/p>\n<p>Smith is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in 2022 after recording 163 tackles, three sacks, and one interception last season.  The Bears, of course, could designate him as their franchise player, but it&#8217;s hard to see that happening given the tenor of this unfinished business between the NFC North franchise and one of their most talented players.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the latest development in a simmering impasse between the Chicago Bears and Pro Bowl linebacker Roquan Smith, the situation just got worse and more complicated. That&#8217;s in the wake of the NFL Management Council sending a memo to all teams alleging that an individual not licensed as an agent by the NFL Players Association &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/how-the-bears-unresolved-contract-situation-with-roquan-smith-just-got-more-complicated\/\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">How the Bears&#8217; unresolved contract situation with Roquan Smith just got more complicated<\/span> Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":40549,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/chicago-bears-gm-ryan-poles-on-roquan-smiths-trade-request\/","url_meta":{"origin":46584,"position":0},"title":"Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles on Roquan Smith&#8217;s trade request","date":"August 9, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"A few hours after Roquan Smith released a statement saying he requested a trade from the Chicago Bears, he watched Tuesday's Family Fest practice from the sideline at Soldier Field.General manager Ryan Poles took in the practice just 35 yards away from his star linebacker. But the two apparently remain\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":43716,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/person-claiming-to-rep-bears-roquan-smith-making-calls-to-teams\/","url_meta":{"origin":46584,"position":1},"title":"Person claiming to rep Bears&#8217; Roquan Smith making calls to teams","date":"August 12, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The Roquan Smith saga playing out in Chicago added a bizarre new chapter on Friday. Days after the 25-year-old linebacker requested a trade from the Bears amid lingering contract issues, a person claiming to represent Smith has been calling teams to test the temperature of the trade market, according to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"Roquan Smith awaits a snap on Sept.  19, 2021.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/08\/smith3.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":52443,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/nfl-executives-reveal-why-roquan-smith-trade-didnt-happen\/","url_meta":{"origin":46584,"position":2},"title":"NFL Executives Reveal Why Roquan Smith Trade Didn&#8217;t Happen","date":"August 22, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Roquan Smith requested a trade two weeks ago. He expressed displeasure at how the Chicago Bears handled his contract negotiations and wanted to go somewhere a team would pay him what he deserves. Such a stance isn't anything new. Many players use the \u201ctrade me\u201d tactic in contract talks. Smith\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":52812,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/first-call-ex-steeler-shines-at-qb-in-cleveland-roquan-smith-willing-to-stay-in-chicago-ravens-extended-preseason-streak\/","url_meta":{"origin":46584,"position":3},"title":"First Call: Ex-Steeler shines at QB in Cleveland;  Roquan Smith willing to stay in Chicago;  Ravens extended preseason streak","date":"August 22, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"An ex-Steelers quarterback is on fire with his new team this preseason. The Roquan Smith dream seems to have died for Pittsburgh fans. The Ravens just can't lose in August. And Pittsburgh has two champions in a pair of very unique sports. All that in Monday's \u201cFirst Call.\u201d And the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":41113,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/bears-could-fetch-first-round-pick-in-roquan-smith-trade\/","url_meta":{"origin":46584,"position":4},"title":"Bears could fetch first-round pick in Roquan Smith trade","date":"August 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Bears linebacker Roquan Smith formally requested a trade after contract negotiations with the front office reached an impasse. Smith detailed everything that's gone wrong, including how he doesn't feel valued by the new front office. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport appeared on 670 the Score's Parkins & Spiegel Showwhere he revealed\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bearswire.usatoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/63\/2021\/11\/USATSI_17232725.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":41293,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/team-most-likely-to-trade-for-roquan-smith-has-been-revealed\/","url_meta":{"origin":46584,"position":5},"title":"Team Most Likely To Trade For Roquan Smith Has Been Revealed","date":"August 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Roquan Smith is growing impatient. He wants his new contract and to be the highest-paid linebacker in the NFL. So he decided to crack up the pressure on Tuesday when he formally requested a trade from the Chicago Bears to another team that would \u201cvalue\u201d his services better. It was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/how-the-bears-unresolved-contract-situation-with-roquan-smith-just-got-more-complicated.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46584"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46584"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46584\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46584"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46584"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46584"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}