The Pittsburgh Steelers could use an upgrade at the off-ball linebacker position, but here’s why they simply cannot justify trading for Roquan Smith.
It isn’t often that a 25-year-old stud player becomes available for trade, but when it does happen, the market typically heats up really fast. In 2019, the Pittsburgh Steelers couldn’t pass on the opportunity to trade for a young, blue-chip player like Minkah Fitzpatrick.
Recently, Ian Rapoport confirmed that Bears talented linebacker, Roquan Smith, has officially requested a trade from the Chicago Bears after feeling like the team was continually low-balling him.
In 2018, Smith was the 8th overall pick in the NFL Draft after a phenomenal career at Georgia. Still just 25 years old and not missing a single game since the 2019 season, most believe that Roquan Smith still holds a lot of value. In his first four NFL seasons, Smith has been one of the most productive linebackers in the league — earning 524 tackles, 43 tackles for a loss, 17 QB hits, 14.0 sacks, 17 pass defenses, and 5 interceptions, according to Pro Football Reference.
Since the news broke that Smith could potentially be dealt in a trade, Steelers fans have gone wild — begging for Pittsburgh to make a trade for the impressive linebacker. While I have little doubt that Roquan would be a sizable improvement over Devin Bush, there are a few reasons why the Steelers can’t justify making this trade.
Steelers would be spending too much on defense
With currently $125 million in payroll on the defensive side of the football this season, the Pittsburgh Steelers officially have the most expensive defense in the NFL, according to Over the Cap. Since just before the 2021 season, the team has already made T.J. Watt and Minkah Fitzpatrick the highest-paid players at their position in the NFL.
As good as Roquan Smith has been at times, it’s hard to justify making this move for a position that typically doesn’t move the needle very much. There’s even less incentive to trade for him when you consider what the Steelers are already spending on defense.
On the other hand, Pittsburgh is dead last in offensive spending at just $67.8 million this year. While this is partially because they have a number of players on rookie deals, the spending has become too unbalanced.
If anything, I would prefer for the Steelers to trade for a young, established offensive lineman (preferably a tackle) who could get Pittsburgh trending in the right direction here.
With players like Shaquille Leonard and Fred Warner already making over $19 million at the LB position annually, it’s going to be impossible to justify throwing this type of money to an off-ball linebacker like Smith. This would end up being a poor financial investment and one that they would probably look to get out of two years down the line.
Steelers can’t afford to spend more draft capital on LB
In addition to immediately turning around and giving Roquan Smith a lucrative new extension, the Steelers also won’t be able to acquire him without significant draft capital. Though I highly doubt the Bears are able to land the first-round pick they are asking for (considering Roquan also needs to be paid by his next team), a second-rounder is well within the realm of possibility.
The Steelers, however, have already spent enough draft capital and resources on the off-ball linebacker position. In 2019, Kevin Colbert forked up a first and second-round draft choice to move up for Bush. Would Omar Khan be willing to turn around and spend another elite pick at the LB position?
While Khan could very well be defensive-minded like Colbert was as a general manager, he knows that this team needs to start investing more on the offensive side of the ball, and giving up one of your top draft choices isn’t going to help.
The combination of giving up good draft capital and being forced to give Roquan Smith a lucrative new contract extension should take the Pittsburgh Steelers out of the running entirely. I like Roquan, but Khan simply can’t justify making this trade in Pittsburgh’s current state.