Chicago Bears linebacker Roquan Smith showed raw emotion over his friend, Robert Quinn, getting traded to the Philadelphia Eagles ... breaking down in tears and ending his press conference after hearing the news.
32-year-old Quinn -- who had 18.5 sacks in 2021 -- was shipped to Philly in exchange for a fourth-round pick on Wednesday ... and Smith was in the middle of his media availability when he got wind of the deal.
"It sucks," 25-year-old Smith said as he tried to compose himself. "I'm gonna take a second for a second, if you don't mind."
"I have a great deal of respect for that guy, you know ... damn. Crazy."
Smith waited several more moments before deciding to get up and leave the room.
Quinn now joins an undefeated Eagles team that's sitting pretty at the top of the NFC East ... which is a much better situation than the 3-4 Bears.
Smith and his Chicago teammates will now try to improve their record without their star defensive end.
As they say -- that's the nature of the business, folks.