2020 vision: Future is bright for Roquan Smith

Roquan Smith’s performance has been a microcosm of the Bears’ 2019 season.

With expectations of a giant leap after a promising rookie season in 2018, the second-year linebacker had a good-but-not-great start. Then there was a mystifying midseason lull after being a sudden late scratch for an undisclosed personal issue in Week 4 against the Vikings. He returned the following week, but didn’t look like the same player he was in 2018.

He eventually regained the spark and quelled doubts about his mindset and his future by turning it up a notch late in the season. He had double-digit sacks in consecutive games against the Eagles, Lions and Rams — and a season-best 15-tackle, two-sack performance against the Lions on Thanksgiving.

And then it was over. Smith suffered a torn pectoral muscle in the first quarter against the Cowboys and was put on injured reserve, ending his season in disappointment.

The Bears as a team seem destined for a similar fate — with slim playoff hopes entering the final three weeks of the season against the Packers (10-3) on the road, the Chiefs (8-5) at home and the Vikings (9-4) on the road. But if their prospects for 2020 are as good as Smith’s, they’ll certainly take it. After a challenging second season, Smith appears ready to reach another level in 2020. Even a Khalil Mack/Akiem Hicks star level of impact.

“It’s there,” coach Matt Nagy said. “I know a lot of defensive coordinators that have come up to me and explained to me how bad they wished he was on their team, and the future he has ahead of him.

“There’s a lot of hard work involved to get to that point. But when you look at the traits that he has and his mental ability — the want — he’s got it all.”

Bears inside linebackers coach Mark DeLeone echoed that sentiment.

“Unbelievable person. Unbelievable player. I think the sky’s the limit for him,” DeLeone said. “I’m heartbroken for him, because the last four weeks he’s played his best ball of the season.”

Smith finished the season with 100 tackles, two sacks, five tackles-for-loss, two pass breakups and one interception in 12 games. Particularly in his second-half run, he showed the sideline-to-sideline speed that, combined with his knowledge of the game and linebacker instincts, elicits those superstar-level expectations.

“There’s a couple of other positions where stats can tell you a lot about a guy — I don’t think that’s the case at inside linebacker,” DeLeone said. “It’s the way you feel a guy during the game. When Ro’s playing good, you feel him during the game. When you watch that game on Thanksgiving, you felt him.”

Smith’s absence against the Vikings and subsequent lackluster play — a concern at midseason — is now a footnote. “We all have our own challenges on and off the field. He’s not the only one,” Nagy said. “But I like the fact that with his own personal challenges, he came out and I thought he had a good year.”

The focus now is on Smith’s rehabilitation following surgery on his torn pectoral. Nagy was unsure if Smith would be ready when the offseason program begins in early April. But whenever he returns, the Bears know what they’ve got — a good player with potential for greatness.

“I saw unbelievable growth from him this season,” DeLeone said. “From the first game to the 13th, I saw growth in him on the field and off the field. [He’s] a 22-year-old guy who is only going to continue to improve. I know he’s gonna attack this rehab . . . and he’s gonna come back and be better than ever.”