The Chicago Bears and rookie first-round pick Roquan Smith have ended their stalemate as ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter reported that the two sides are working on an agreement to put the finishing touches on his contract. This ends a lengthy hold out which caused Smith to miss his entire rookie training camp, 29 days in all, and two preseason games with the team.

Schefter is also reporting that the deal is for four years, with $18 million guaranteed. After disputing about language in his contract, Smith's camp may have just got what they exactly wanted although no official details are out.

With Smith now signed, the focus turns to football and getting him on the field and ready to go for Week 1.

The Bears and Broncos are holding a joint practice in Denver this week before they meet in Week 2 of the preseason on Saturday night. It's very unlikely Smith plays Saturday but he will be at least on the practice field with the team throughout the week.

More realistically, Smith will likely make his debut in Week 3 of the preseason when the Bears host the Kansas City Chiefs at Soldier Field on August 25th. If it just so happens to work out that way, Smith will play in front of the hometown crowd in his debut after ending this long hold out.

While that's the preseason target, there's a good chance Smith plays and maybe even starts against Green Bay in Week 1 of the regular season.

The linebacker has missed all of training camp and the reps that come with it but with an entire month and three more preseason games left, Smith will likely see playing time vs. the Packers.

One thing he will have to work on is communication. Fellow inside linebacker Danny Trevathan spoke on the challenge Smith might face when he does report to the team and gets on the field.

"Just communication with the players. Different players because, you know, people play different," Trevathan said. "You’ve got to get out here and get that aspect. But we’ll get him tied in when he gets here. You kind of need that feel to be comfortable with the people you’re in and calls to be made sometimes, but we’ll get him right when he gets here."

But even if he's ready to play, will Smith be ready to start? That's another big question and head coach Matt Nagy even admitted that Smith missing camp could limit what he does Week 1.

"Yeah, I would say so. I think it does," Nagy said as the Bears wrapped up training camp. "You’re playing at that position and there are a lot of calls that go on, very similar to a quarterback, there’s a lot going on. But I have full confidence in Vic and his staff that when he does get here, they’ll get him up to speed and whenever that is, we’ll see. But again, that’s why we all get paid as coaches is to try to help our players out as much as possible and that’s kind of where we’re at. "

As far as what those limitations are, fellow inside linebacker Trevathan said it could depend on what Smith has been doing while holding out.

"It all depends," Trevathan said. "If you’re still preparing for football—you’ve got to be in shape, obviously—you’ve got to get the plays you’ve got to get the checks, you’ve got to get everything down pat. So hopefully he’s still working on some of that."

The Bears and Broncos are scheduled to practice Wednesday and Thursday with a day off on Friday before they meet on Saturday. We should hear from Smith on one of those days ahead of the game.