Ravens LB Roquan Smith has no grudge against Bears, GM Ryan Poles after landing with a team that ‘loves’ him

BALTIMORE — Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith is long past feeling petty about Bears general manager Ryan Poles trading him three years ago. And why wouldn’t he be, especially after getting everything he wanted with a $100 million contract extension and the chance to play for a perennial contender?

Smith also picked up his first win over his old team as the Ravens rolled the Bears 30-16 at M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday. Revenge wasn’t a factor, Smith said. His main motivation was keeping the Ravens’ playoff hopes alive after a 1-5 start.

“We knew the position we were in,” he told the Sun-Times. “If it was a couple months after I got traded or the same year, maybe I would’ve felt [extra incentive], but nowadays, I know who I am as a person, I know who I am as a player, and I’m comfortable with that. … It’s not about anything else.”

Smith described it as a perfect day: He had a game-high 12 tackles, caught up with some friends he hadn’t seen in a while — specifically shouting out longtime equipment manager Tony Medlin and other staffers — and got a win the Ravens desperately needed. He stopped quarterback Caleb Williams on a quarterback sneak at the goal line near the end of the game, too.

He did not run into Poles, and the two haven’t talked since the trade, but Smith spoke positively of him and wished him well.

They were in an ugly standoff just months into Poles’ tenure as Smith pushed for an extension going into the 2022 season and Poles refused to meet his number on a new deal.

After a hold-in, a trade request and an open letter to chairman George McCaskey to step in and secure his future with the Bears, Smith relented and returned to practice a few weeks into training camp. But with an impasse in negotiations, Poles dealt him for a second- and fifth-round pick and used what would’ve been Smith’s money to sign linebackers Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards in the ensuing offseason.

Smith meanwhile, soon received that five-year, $100 million contract from the Ravens and has been an All-Pro for them the last three seasons. He said later it made him “so happy just knowing my career is not going down the drain.” So no complaints on his end.

“You have to do what you feel is best for your organization, and that’s his role,” Smith said. “I’m here, they love me here, I love them here.”