Ravens' Roquan Smith Reveals Secrets to Success

Baltimore Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith excels on both the physical and mental fronts.
Sep 5, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Baltimore Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith (0) during the second half against the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
Sep 5, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Baltimore Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith (0) during the second half against the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
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Baltimore Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith isn't just one of the best players at his position not just for his physical prowess, but his football IQ as well.

Earlier this week, star Philadelphia Eagles offensive tackle Lane Johnson gave Smith some high praise for his ability to dissect opposing offenses. He even compared Smith to former Carolina Panthers star Luke Kuechly, a likely future Hall of Famer.

"I thought they were a pretty stout defense," Johnson said. "You've got Roquan Smith calling out lots of plays we were about to run. For me, seeing a MIKE linebacker doing that? Since Luke Kuechly, he's probably the guy calling out the most stuff. Very smart player. Instinctive player. That's why he's had so much success."

It didn't take too long for Smith to hear of those comments. During an appearance on "Air it Out" by Whistle, owned by sports streaming giant DAZN, Smith reciprocated Johnson's praise and revealed what makes him so successful from a mental standpoint.

"I think it just goes back to my preparation, and the coaches giving me what I ask for throughout the week, what teams like to do in certain situations, just knowing what are these guys' top plays," Smith said. "At the end of the day, I look at it from this perspective: offensive coordinators, humans, they're all creatures of habits and we all have tendencies at the end of the day, regardless if they're small or little.

"Being able to pay attention to that, being able to dissect it and knowing how offenses are going to try to attack you ... little things like that, I'm always just trying to pay attention to and if I catch those things it just allows me to play faster."

Smith, a first-team All-Pro in each of the past two seasons, loves a good challenge, and he's seen plenty of them this season with all the great quarterbacks he's faced. Luckily, Lamar Jackson, possibly the most-challenging quarterback to defend in the NFL, is also the one on his team.

"It's pretty special what he's able to do," Smith said. "In practice, he doesn't even run, so that's the thing where he just beats you from the pocket and it's just like wow, just imagine when he adds this other thing like being able to actually pull it down and run. When you see some of the throws he makes, and some of the acrobatic things he does like acting like he's about to throw it somewhere, no-look passes and different things like that, it's crazy. He's as quick as a cat, as we all know.

"I never got to play against him, and I'm glad I never got to play against him because I'd be scratching my head a lot."

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