Nick Foles being elevated to the starting job wasn’t a huge surprise to many. The only surprise was how quickly it happened. The general belief was Mitch Trubisky would likely hang onto the job for at least the first month of the season. However, by October or early November, the odds were strong that Foles would be the guy.
Nobody thought it would happen before the end of Week 3. Yet that is how it went down. Mitch Trubisky struggled in Atlanta against a bad Falcons defense, threw an ugly interception, Matt Nagy had seen enough. The Chicago Bears head coach had given him ample opportunities to show he was making progress within the offense. It just wasn’t happening.
Then Foles came in, threw three touchdowns, and led the team to a comeback victory. There is no question this is his team now. At least for the rest of 2020. The big question people have though is whether he can be their guy beyond this season. Can he be somebody to build around or should the Bears start hunting the college ranks for their next young gun?
Nick Foles can play but with a critical caveat
A lot of experts have it in their heads that Foles can’t play. Not as a starter. Look at what happened in Jacksonville. He got replaced by Gardner Minshew. Look at what happened in St. Louis. He was benched for Case Keenum. The guy managed to get hot a couple of times and is riding those successes to more adulation than he deserves.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
There are some around the league who don’t see it that way. It’s less a case of ability and more availability in their eyes. Brad Bigg of the Chicago Tribune heard this from a longtime NFL scout.
“That’s simple,” a veteran pro scout said when asked why Foles has not been able to stick as a starter. “When he stays healthy, he’s able to play. Look over the course of his career, when he’s had a chance to start, he’s balled out. To me, it’s always been about Nick’s health. It’s never been about his ability. Why do you think Jacksonville gave him that money? If the Bears can keep him healthy, he’s going to be good. He can galvanize a team.”
Foles has never started more than 11 games in a season during his career. He broke his collarbone in 2014 halfway through the year. Then last season, the same thing happened again in Jacksonville. This time in the first game. People have legitimate questions about his ability to stay upright for 14-16 games.
If the Bears see him as their guy, they have to protect him.
At 31-years old, Foles is not over the hill. He’s still in his prime as quarterbacks go. There’s a chance he could have another good five years left in him under the right circumstances. It also makes sense from a financial standpoint. The Bears control Foles through the 2022 season with manageable cap hits of $6.66 million and $10.66 million respectively the next two years. He has the ability to earn more through incentives.
That flexibility would allow them to reshuffle the roster, which is starting to show some age in certain areas. Having a viable starting quarterback at a cheap price is a valuable commodity. There is no doubt Nick Foles comes with concerns, but enough is there to make the risk worth it.
