The Chicago Bears are back in familiar territory. One known as quarterback hell. They tried for three years to make things work with Mitch Trubisky. Despite some signs of hope in 2018, it just didn’t happen. So they traded for Nick Foles this offseason. Again, after some initial promise when he came in back in September, things have gone south.
His frustrating performance against the New Orleans Saints which featured five sacks and a number of awful throws drew the anger of fans. Many of them have seen enough. They want to go back to Trubisky. At least he could move around with his legs and improvise a little better. Enough with the madness. Why isn’t Matt Nagy already doing it?
Probably because he doesn’t want to.
People so easily forget how this entire thing started. After going 2-0 to start the season, Trubisky struggled in Atlanta. After a bad interception in the second half, Nagy surprised everybody by pulling him in favor of Foles. Some in the media thought the hook was kind of quick. Sure Trubisky wasn’t playing well but his stats and the overall record didn’t seem to warrant a benching.
That suggests the Bears head coach was already close to making a change even before the season began. His patience with Trubisky was already thin. Dan Graziano of ESPN seemed to confirm this. On the GET UP program, he was asked if it was possible the team might look to Trubisky again. He made it clear that is not going to happen.
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The Bears are done with him.
Bears have more than one reason avoid Mitch Trubisky
Not wanting to reopen an old would is fair enough. The Bears had 33 games to evaluate him since Nagy arrived in 2018. There is nothing left for them to see. He is what he is and what he is isn’t good enough. They feel Foles is their best option moving forward. While he has struggled to be sure, he’s also played an array of good teams. Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Tampa Bay, and New Orleans all look like playoff contenders.
This staff needs information. They have to know what they have at quarterback. Five games aren’t nearly enough information to make an informed decision on Foles. The Bears have to figure out if he is going to be in their plans beyond 2020. Or should they start thinking about acquiring the next guy in the spring?
Trubisky is the past. Foles is key to determining their future.
If he finishes strong? Great. The Bears will know they have a potential bridge option for the next year or so, allowing them to focus on other areas of the roster that need attention. If he flounders? Then quarterback becomes a top priority in 2021 along with the offensive line. From there it becomes a matter of whether GM Ryan Pace is kept around to lead that search.
He is the one that pretty much put the Bears in this predicament. Would the McCaskeys dare give him another chance? We’ll find out.