The Chicago Bears are getting an education on what their priorities will be in 2021. After a brief three-year stint trying to make the Mitch Trubisky thing work, they’re once again entering the quarterback pool. Nick Foles hasn’t done enough to warrant any confidence he’s anything more than a top backup at this stage of his career. With Trubisky a free agent this offseason, the writing is on the wall.
This team will be hunting for a new signal-caller. It’s a matter of whether they find him in March or April. Given the outlook of the veteran market, the odds are far more likely that Chicago will focus on the NFL draft. Experts agree this could be a particularly strong class with as many as five potential 1st rounders alone.
Good news for a team that might not pick in the top 10. Like the Bears.
By the look of things, they haven’t wasted time in their evaluation process. According to draft expert Jordan Reid, multiple Bears representatives were spotted at the SEC showdown between Florida and Arkansas. The big name everybody is there to see is Kyle Trask. The 6’5 quarterback for the Gators first gained notoriety last year and has since elevated his profile to another level.
Coming into that game, he’d thrown for 1,815 yards and 22 touchdowns with just three interceptions. Easily one of the hottest quarterbacks in the country. At the time of writing this, he’d already thrown for 193 yards and three touchdowns on 13-of-16 passing. Suffice to say the guy is locked in and gaining a boatload of traction looking towards next April.
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Six teams in attendance at tonight’s Florida-Arkansas matchup (lottery assigned): Dolphins, Bears, Giants, Vikings, Panthers, and Seahawks.
— Jordan Reid (@Jordan_Reid) November 14, 2020
Trask isn’t the only Chicago Bears arm to watch
It just so happens that the guy he replaced at Florida is his opponent in that game. Feleipe Franks was solid in his first year there in 2018, throwing 24 TDs to just six interceptions. He was off to a promising start the next year but sadly broke his ankle in the third game. This allowed Trask to ascend. Rather than compete for the job, Franks transferred to Arkansas. A decision that appears to be paying off.
Going into the game, he had thrown for 1,428 yards, 14 touchdowns and three interceptions in six games. While not nearly as prolific, experts remain intrigued by his talent. He stands 6’6 and 230 lbs with plenty of arm talent to attack down the field. He isn’t in that 1st round conversation, but he could be a fascinating 3rd or 4th round option to develop.
🎶 Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back 🎶
Feleipe Franks with a dime in The Swamp to put Arkansas on the board 💪 pic.twitter.com/soPYKzaMsK
— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) November 15, 2020
Both are proving why the 2021 class has so much hype
The obvious question isn’t so much whether the Chicago Bears will draft a quarterback. It’s a matter of when and who will be making that pick. Right now Ryan Pace is still GM of the team. Word is he’s absolutely planning on targeting a QB next spring. What people aren’t sure about is whether ownership will give him that opportunity.
Pace’s track record at the position isn’t great. In fact, it sucks. If the Bears miss the playoffs this year, it will mark the fifth time in six seasons. It would be hard to justify keeping him around next year under such conditions. That means the next quarterback choice will fall to whoever his successor ends up being.
Will it be one of these two guys? We shall see.