The Chicago Bears coaching staff shocked many on Wednesday afternoon as it was announced that rookie quarterback and the number two overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft Mitchell Trubisky would be the team’s backup quarterback in Week 1.
This means that Trubisky will be the Bears quarterback if starting quarterback Mike Glennon gets injured or performs poorly. The team’s decision to have Trubisky back up Glennon speaks volumes for many facets of the Bears organization heading into 2017.
When the Bears drafted Trubisky, the decision came as a surprise as all because of Bears need in other positions heading into draft night and because of his lack of experience in college only starting 13 games in 2016.
Many experts also saw him as a project as they felt he would need the most time to develop out of this draft’s quarterback class, but had the highest ceiling for potential out of all of them.
Trubisky so far has proved his skeptics wrong during the pre-season as in the four games he threw three touchdowns and no interceptions.
The other question mark that surrounds Trubisky was whether he was going to be able to adapt to an NFL playbook, and so far he has proven those skeptics wrong as well.
In his preseason debut against the Denver Broncos and the following game against the Arizona Cardinals, a lot of pass plays called for him were either boot-legs or short out routes. In the third preseason game against the Tennesse Titans, offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains had Trubisky run a more traditional NFL passing attack that featured more drop-back passes in the pocket.
Trubisky had his longest completion of the pre-season connecting with wide receiver Tanner Gentry on a 45-yard deep pass for a touchdown in that game as well.
There are a few others that deserve credit for Trubisky’s growth along with Trubisky himself, one of those people is Loggains, who many questions whether he would be the right coach to develop Trubisky. Loggains has proven that he has Trubisky on the right track so far as he has provided the right game plan to allow the young quarterback to grow while not overloading him with too much.
The next test for Loggains with Trubisky will come if Glennon is injured during a game forcing Trubisky into action and possibly lead Loggains to change what ever game plan he has on the fly.
General manager Ryan Pace also deserves credit for Trubisky’s success as he not only spent time scouting the quarterback but for being courageous enough to make such a risky draft selection.
It was Pace’s decision to trade up one spot to move to the second pick as he traded his 2017 first round pick, a third round, fourth round pick, and a third round pick in 2018. Many thought the move was not needed because many thought the San Francisco 49ers who controlled the second overall pick, were either not looking to draft Trubisky nor had any trade suitors for the pick.
Others feared that Pace had gambled too much of the Bears draft for one player when there were multiple positions in need and highly valued. The young quarterback’s success along with Pace’s other draft selections so far this pre-season has led to many giving praise now to the Bears GM for his job in this draft.
When the Bears kickoff on Sunday, the team will be focusing on a way to beat the Atlanta Falcons but there will be many counting the plays until it is Trubisky’s time to play whether due to injury or performance.
It will be a far different attitude shared by many just a few month prior, where many people affiliated with the Bears organization were questioned in regards to their top draft choice. If and when Trubisky sees the field for the Bears this season, the fact that the team has been able to come this far with him deserves to be recognized.
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1 Comment
Either the Bears QBs suck or Mitch is a superstar, I vote for number one.