The NFL Draft took place on Thursday night in Arlington, Texas, the home of the Dallas Cowboys. It is the third year in a row that the NFL Draft has moved locations. It was held in Philidelphia in 2017, and Chicago in 2016. There was an abundance of big names to be taken, a handful of them being almost entirely quarterbacks.

The Chicago Bears were ready to pick at number eight a player that exemplified that tradition of the ferociously built teams of the past. Since 2013 when the Bears chose Kyle Long at the 20th pick, Chicago has gone on the side of picking offense 50 percent of the time and actually trading off each side of the ball since 2011.

Last year they picked franchise quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. This year was no different as Chicago decided it was time to add to their defense.

Who did the Chicago Bears choose at number 8?

In the tradition of Bears defense, Chicago wanted someone that they could put alongside there hopeful Draft Pick of 2016 in Leonard Floyd, who was chosen 9th overall out of Georgia.

Well, conveniently enough, the Bears chose linebacker Roquan Smith out of the University of Georgia, Floyd's old Bulldog's teammate.

According to Larry Meyer, the Chicago Bears senior writer, Smith is a 6-1, 236-pound linebacker who received the honor of being voted first-team All-American.

He won the Butkus Award which is awarded to the nations best linebacker and he was named SEC defensive player of the year. Smith was also a finalist for two other honors awarded to the country's best defensive player.

Smith ran a 4.51 40-yard dash which was the second-fastest time among linebackers. Smith says he has a varied skillset.

"I feel like my skillset varies," Smith told chicagobears.com. "I feel like I'm a rangy guy, sideline-to-sideline. I can put my facemask on you. I feel like I can do a lot of things."

Smith says his IQ for the game of football is "on another level."

The Bears were on the same page with Smith.

Chicago was obviously intrigued by his upside and skill set.

Ryan Pace said the Bears were united about Smith, as reported by the Chicago Sun-Times. Pace, defensive coordinater Vic Fangio, and new head coach Matt Nagy each had Smith ranked among the top on their draft boards.

The Chicago Sun-Times also states that Smith is the highest linebacker drafted by the Bears since Waymond Bryant who was selected fourth overall in 1974. Quite a few Chicago linebacker greats to live up to for Smith as he has to hear names like Otis Wilson, Mike Singletary, and 2018 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Brian Urlacher.

Smith started all 15 games for the Georgia Bulldogs in 2017, which helped lead them the CFP national championship game. He led the Bulldogs with 137 tackles, 6.5 sacks, 14.0 tackles-for-loss and 20-quarterback hits.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED