Ravens, Roquan Smith agree to five-year extension

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The Ravens will be keeping linebacker Roquan Smith around for a while.

Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, Smith and Baltimore have agreed to a five-year contract extension worth $100 million.

The deal includes $45 million guaranteed and $60 million in total guarantees.

The Ravens acquired Smith from the Bears at the end of October in exchange for a second-round pick, a fifth-round pick, and linebacker A.J. Klein. Smith had made it clear that he did not plan to sign an extension with Chicago, cutting off contract negotiations with the club before the season.

Smith immediately became a key piece to Baltimore’s defense, recording 86 tackles, seven tackles for loss, an interception, 2.0 sacks, and three passes defensed in his nine games.

Smith has been a second-team All-Pro in each of the last two seasons.

With the Ravens signing Smith to an extension, they’ll now have the franchise tag to use on quarterback Lamar Jackson to prevent him from hitting free agency in March.

55 responses to “Ravens, Roquan Smith agree to five-year extension

  1. Remember when Flacco had to gamble on himself and win the Super Bowl in order to secure $100m? Flaccos not even retired and he’s seeing LBs make $100m without winning anything. Absolutely nuts.

  2. pats92 says:
    January 10, 2023 at 1:56 pm
    Lamar to Miami.
    ——————————————————————————————-
    Miami doesn’t have the CAP space.

  3. The Ravens and millions and millions of fans saw his clean play, thus he was compensated handsomely.

  4. Just proves that trading him was the right thing for the Bears to do. So much for’I don’t want to negotiate during the season’ , guess preppy or the playoffs is no biggie right? Good riddance …..

  5. Bet on himself and won, big time. See how well it plays out for the Ravens. Fine player, but tougher to think of inside guy having same impact as outside guy due to pash rush (get bigger bucks out there). Ravens got what they wanted and he clearly got what he wanted (and didn’t have to pay agent for advice, right?).

  6. I said earlier this year after they traded for Roquan, that if it came down to paying him or Jackson, the smart money was on him. The only thing Lamar’s getting in Baltimore is tagged and shopped…..

  7. That is a lot of money to pay an off-ball LB even a great one. The team will spin it as a great signing but this will put a severe limitation on their cap.

  8. This makes me happy as a Ravens fan.

    I expect Lamar gets the tag to retain his rights but EDC will listen to offers

  9. If they were better at drafting, they wouldn’t need to trade for these kinds of things. The loss of picks and the cost is not great value.

  10. To everyone saying why don’t they pay Lamar, you do realize Lamar broke off negotiations. Not the Ravens.

    Negotiations mean you, you know, negotiate.

    It doesn’t mean you make a demand then stop when you don’t get what you want. That’s actually the opposite of negotiating.

  11. dino2997 says:
    January 10, 2023 at 2:29 pm
    That is a lot of money to pay an off-ball LB even a great one. The team will spin it as a great signing but this will put a severe limitation on their cap.

    They’re projected to be $44 million under the cap going into the 2023 off-season and that’s before likely parting ways with vets like Peters, Campbell, etc.

  12. alvinmack says:
    January 10, 2023 at 2:45 pm
    Remind me why the Bears got rid of this Monster and traded for Claypool. LOL

    ———————————————————–

    It’s called a salary cap. Roquan just broke the bank for a player that doesn’t make a lot of game changing plays. Claypool is still on his rookie contract. LOL?

  13. If they were better at drafting, they wouldn’t need to trade for these kinds of things. The loss of picks and the cost is not great value.

    Speaking of the draft and being better…didn’t your Pats draft NKeal Harry? Yes they did and you are throwing shady…? You have no shame but come on dude you are embarrassing Pats fans.

  14. nkellar11 says:
    January 10, 2023 at 3:05 pm
    dino2997 says:
    January 10, 2023 at 2:29 pm
    That is a lot of money to pay an off-ball LB even a great one. The team will spin it as a great signing but this will put a severe limitation on their cap.

    They’re projected to be $44 million under the cap going into the 2023 off-season and that’s before likely parting ways with vets like Peters, Campbell, etc.

    ——————————————————————-

    You’re forgetting the elephant in the room. Lamar Jackson if tagged will cause an immediate choke hold on the cap. The team struggles to win games without him.

  15. Smith is a great player but this is like paying top dollar for a running back while your QB is in limbo. I don’t think Jackson wants to be there anymore and judging from his weapons I don’t Blame him. They better hope they can win 16-13 every week without any young proven pass rushers. This is a 4 win team without Jackson as they proved down the stretch.

  16. Fixed it…

    To everyone saying why don’t they pay Roquan, you do realize Roquan broke off negotiations. Not the Bears.

    Negotiations mean you, you know, negotiate.

    It doesn’t mean you make a demand then stop when you don’t get what you want. That’s actually the opposite of negotiating.

    Sucks to lose him, not sure he was a good fit for Eberflus’ system. Should’ve bet on himself and gotten paid here. The Saint Omni weirdness, the Apple Notes request to trade.

    Good luck in Baltimore!

  17. Southpaw says:
    January 10, 2023 at 2:00 pm
    Remember when Flacco had to gamble on himself and win the Super Bowl in order to secure $100m? Flaccos not even retired and he’s seeing LBs make $100m without winning anything. Absolutely nuts.
    ————————-
    Remember when Flacco won the SB and then received a 6 year contract that made him the highest paid QB? In those 6 years he delivered 1 playoff win. Talk about value added!

  18. Roquan got smoked by Najee Haris for the winnning TD 2 weeks ago against their rival.
    Hope the Ravens give Lamar a ridiculous contract too.

  19. He was never going to get that from the Bears. And he was a pick of their former GM, drafted to play in a scheme they no longer run. He got the payday he wanted and gets to play on a contending team, and the Bears have a chance to fill his position with a better fit for far less money, leaving them more to be spent on DL, OL and WR which are all desperately needed as part of an almost total offseason rebuild.

  20. Lamar’s cap hit will be similar whether he is franchised or signed. But the pain is delayed and longer if you sign him to a long term deal. SO I think the ravens will franchise Lamar and use him up in the next year or two.

    If Lamar signs his franchise and plays hard, the Ravens will give him a say in where he lands.

    If he continues to be a pain, the Ravens will just move him to the highest bidder. Heck, he might have already used up his good will with this latest stunt.

  21. Stopping the run in the AFC North is job one. Can’t do it without a great MLB. And Roquan is a great one.

  22. Patrick Queen is an absolute bust. If they had it on him, they wouldn’t have need to waster another draft pick and then overpay.

  23. Yeah.. I’d like to see Roquan square up and try to tackle Derrick Henry. Henry would Truck Roquan, if not stiff arm Roquan into early retirement.

  24. Roquan would have been an excellent player in either the Bears or Ravens scheme. In the Raven’s scheme, he plays a traditional ILB position. In the Bears scheme, the ILB position is more like a third safety. In either scheme, Roquan had the physical gifts to play each position very well. While some are criticizing him for not putting up huge amounts of sacks and picks, that wasn’t his job. He doesn’t cover every play or rush the QB every play. He’s a jack of all trades, limiting the damage the offense inflicts in every way possible.
    His impact can be seen in how the Bears D disintegrated after he was traded. While he was there, it was still a top 10 D. Once he was traded, it became a laughingstock and the Bears never won another game. Can’t say he’s a player without impact.

  25. Good for Ro. It’s really a 60M deal not 100M. He deserves everything he can get and a actual 60M is not too much for what he brings on the field and in the organization.

  26. yoffpitch99 says:
    January 10, 2023 at 4:50 pm
    Yeah.. I’d like to see Roquan square up and try to tackle Derrick Henry. Henry would Truck Roquan, if not stiff arm Roquan into early retirement.

    ———-

    Henry couldn’t even truck Robert Spillane.

  27. alvinmack says:
    January 10, 2023 at 2:45 pm
    Remind me why the Bears got rid of this Monster and traded for Claypool. LOL

    Cuz he’s a 3-4 ILB only, (a good one) and the Bears run a 4-3.

  28. Ro Smith is a great LB, but there were hints the past few seasons that the train might go off the rails once in a while.
    His mystery agent calling around the league is just one of the clues.
    I wish nothing but the best for the young man, but I wouldn’t make him the focal point of my team.

  29. steelersbandwagon says:
    January 10, 2023 at 4:12 pm
    Lamar’s cap hit will be similar whether he is franchised or signed. But the pain is delayed and longer if you sign him to a long term deal. SO I think the ravens will franchise Lamar and use him up in the next year or two.

    If Lamar signs his franchise and plays hard, the Ravens will give him a say in where he lands.

    If he continues to be a pain, the Ravens will just move him to the highest bidder. Heck, he might have already used up his good will with this latest stunt.

    ///////////////////////////////

    The Ravens can’t trade Lamar until he signs the franchise tender which he doesn’t really have to do until November so next season will be shot. And No team is going to give significant draft capital unless Jackson he agrees to an extension prior to the trade. The Ravens have played themselves. Decosta is the worst GM in football. They do not have all the leverage.

  30. This might become a win/win/win for all parties involved. That said, that’s a lot of money for a LB that isn’t a ballhawk or sack specialist.

  31. Now this is a signing that is worth the $$$. Lamar in the other hand bet on himself and lost. Probably will be franchises and will be gone after next year

  32. The guy is a pro and a beast why did the sorry Bears NOT resign him again? Good for him to get paid he deserves the money. BEAST!!

  33. A lot of $ for a middle linebacker. That’s more than Bobby Wagner made as 1st team all pro for many years.

  34. Beginning of salary cap hell. Next year his heavy pockets will start kicking in . He will be 1/2 the player he was . Money does that.

  35. “alvinmack says:
    January 10, 2023 at 2:45 pm
    Remind me why the Bears got rid of this Monster and traded for Claypool. LOL”

    Because you don’t need to spend big on a off the ball tackler. The undrafted free agent that filled his spot took up his tackles at the same rate till he got hurt.

  36. Ravens are in a tough spot. They can’t win without Lamar but can’t trust him to be healthy. They will have to franchise tag him and pay top dollar. This is a lot of money for an inside linebacker. Let’s hope Roquan is still motivated to play after getting the huge guaranteed contract.

  37. TheTruth says:
    January 10, 2023 at 3:57 pm

    Southpaw says:
    January 10, 2023 at 2:00 pm
    Remember when Flacco had to gamble on himself and win the Super Bowl in order to secure $100m? Flaccos not even retired and he’s seeing LBs make $100m without winning anything. Absolutely nuts.
    ————————-
    Remember when Flacco won the SB and then received a 6 year contract that made him the highest paid QB? In those 6 years he delivered 1 playoff win. Talk about value added!
    _________________________

    So? How many QBs got paid without winning anything? That Ravens team wasn’t that great anyway. They had a lucky playoff run and the next 6 years were who they were. They messed with Joe and had to pay the piper. That’s on the Ravens. And on the flip side, not paying Joe, guarantees nothing. At least you won a SB in the end!

  38. Gonna be interesting if Ravens franchise Lame Arm after this whopper. They’re poised to lose a few solid D players to salary cap issues and age. If they end up dumping Jax, gonna have to rebuild offense around someone who can actually throw a 30 yd out pattern. They’ll have plenty of time to ponder those moves next Monday.

  39. I guarantee he was offered at least this by the Bears. Based on everything I’ve read, they wanted him to be the face of the defense.

    That being said, everyone who thinks Lamar bet on himself and lost hasn’t watched any games he didn’t start. Ravens looked like an average squad without him and a playoff team with him.

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