A year after he was traded to the Baltimore Ravens, Roquan Smith expressed gratitude to the Chicago Bears for trading him.

The linebacker ultimately signed a five-year, $100 million extension with the Ravens.

Baltimore sits at 7-2 and is vying for the top seed in the AFC, while the Bears are 2-7 amid another troubling season.

"Man, it's pretty crazy thinking back to when I was initially traded," Smith said. "It was bittersweet for me, just knowing Chicago and rightfully so. But if I would've stayed there, honestly, [I] wouldn't have been able to compete for a title anytime soon. And then when I came over here, it took me a while, like a couple of weeks, to really realize how stacked this team was, as well as how many good people there are on this team, and how they just bring in truly good people.

"And when I just think about it from the perspective of having the opportunity to compete for one year in and year out with the talent we have. Man, it makes me so happy, just knowing my career is not going down the drain, in the sense of playing somewhere where I'm not truly competing for a title."