It’s amazing how the narrative can shift on a single player over the course of an NFL season. For Mitch Trubisky, it endured an incredible elevator ride of emotions. The season started out with lots of people believing it was only a matter of time before he wore out the patience of head coach Matt Nagy. Three weeks into the season, that proved true as the 26-year old was unceremoniously benched in favor of veteran Nick Foles.
Many celebrated the move. However, as time went on and Foles struggled people began to pine for Trubisky to be put back in. That finally happened after the bye week in November. To the surprise of many, the Chicago Bears offense somehow pulled itself out of the mud and began scoring points down the stretch. Enough to help them go 3-3 to reach 8-8 after a six-game skid almost torpedoed their season.
This reversal of fortune has many wondering if they were too quick to judge the QB.
Maybe the light has finally gone on. Continue to develop this new offense around him, find better protection and weapons and this could be that long-awaited flipping the switch, right? Some think so. That is why they’re already calling for the Bears to start making plans on working out some sort of extension. Nothing crazy. Maybe a two or three-year deal that has an early out after the first year.
Except is this really the best idea? History has shown rewarding uneven quarterbacks is never a good idea. Let’s evaluate Trubisky based on the numbers. Across nine starts he threw for 2,055 yards, 16 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. Good enough for a 93.5 passer rating. Not bad. Except context is always key.
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Six of those nine starts? They came against one of the nine worst pass defenses in the entire NFL. The other three were against New York and Green Bay. In those games, he threw five touchdowns and five interceptions. Basically, whenever Trubisky was confronted by a competent defense this year, he’s looked decidedly inadequate.
Are the Bears sure they want to pay him for that?
PFF: Which Quarterbacks played against the most difficult pass defenses? from CHIBears
Mitch Trubisky is the worst kind of QB. He’s okay
He’s the guy who can have good games against bad teams but the moment he’s confronted with talented and/or well-coached defenses? He immediately reverts to looking like he’s still a rookie. This leads a team and its fans into a vicious cycle. One of hope followed by disappointment followed by hope followed by disappointment. A quarterback who represents purgatory that is so difficult to escape.
A lot of Bears fans don’t want to move on from Mitch Trubisky. Not necessarily because they feel he is a franchise guy. More because they fear the team won’t be able to do any better. It isn’t like Chicago has the best reputation for finding competent quarterbacks. With their track record, they’re almost certain to downgrade. So just keep Trubisky and hope he can do enough to at least keep them in playoff contention every year.
All the while Aaron Rodgers is sure to control the division moving forward.
It shouldn’t be that way. Settling for okay is not how a team wins championships in the NFL. This is a quarterback-driven league. If you don’t have a good one, you don’t have one. Investing heavily in the defense may have worked in decades past but that just isn’t a viable strategy anymore. They can’t be afraid to want something more. Trubisky isn’t the guy. They have four seasons of proof. It’s time to try again.
