Bears linebacker Roquan Smith went public with his desire to be traded on Tuesday morning and General Manager Ryan Poles offered a response from the team at a press conference on Tuesday afternoon.
Poles said he was disappointed that things have progressed to this point because he loves Smith as a person and a player and “thought we’d be in a better situation” by this point in the summer. Poles said that he thought the offer of a new contract for Smith showed “him the respect he deserves,” but that a deal has to make sense for both sides and “obviously we’re not at that point.”
Neither that disappointment nor Smith’s request has Poles ready to say things have reached a point of no return, however.
“Right now, my intentions are to sign Roquan to this team,” Poles said. “We’re going to take it day by day. At the end of the day we have to do what’s best for this organization, but my intention is to make sure Roquan Smith is on this team.”
Smith’s stated intention is to play for someone other than the Bears, so something’s gonna have to give in Chicago for the status quo to change.
