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Some Expect White Sox Jimenez To Be Called Up This Week

By
Matt Enuco
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It continues. White Sox minor-league star Eloy Jimenez is still in the minors after Leury Garcia entered the 10-day DL with a strained hamstring. Ryan LaMarre was raised to the big league club on Monday instead and White Sox fans on social media immediately reverted to complaining. But, ESPN’s Bruce Levine — the prickly and wise old Chicago sage — sent a message to fans that will buoy spirits for at least the next week.

Unless Bruce has inside information that the White Sox plan on dumping an outfielder to open a roster spot for Jimenez, I don’t think the young slugger is in Chicago by the end of the week.

The media swoons over Jimenez

The rumors and speculation around Jimenez make a great media narrative to stir up conversation in a season where the White Sox are depressingly bad, yet the losses were not unexpected and they have improved in the second half. They just swept the Tampa Bay Rays and logged their first four-game win streak of the season. I mean, progress is progress.

After the trade deadline, Rick Hahn gave the now infamous “checklist” speech about the few boxes left that Michael Kopech and Jimenez have to check before they are called up. Many fans cast of their naivete and called out the statistical facts: Jimenez is batting .444 over his last 10 games, posted a .435 average in July at Triple-A, and has blasted eight home runs with a 1.104 OPS in Triple-A since being called up in late June.

Yes, he is very close to earning a promotion as White Sox director of player development Chris Getz mentioned yesterday on the Hit and Run show. But shouting about stifling Jimenez’s development by keeping him down in the minors is nonsense.

From what we know about how the White Sox and other organizations operate in bringing up young players, it is unlikely that we will see Jimenez in the majors this season. Getz said earlier in the season that they have benchmarks for every player in the minors they must hit (those pesky boxes ready for check marks) and given the Sox state of the rebuild, these two facts don’t equate to burning major-league service time on Jimenez this season.

How do you want it?

And despite many believing Jimenez has nothing left to prove in the minors (just like the same people did in May when Kopech threw cold water on every opponent for a month) he has only played 29 games in Triple-A. Yoan Moncada spent more time in Triple-A than Jimenez has and by all estimations, Moncada was a toolshed that couldn’t miss. Well, he has struggled mightily this season and the irrational few who are calling for YoYo to be demoted to Triple-A are probably the same few squealing to bring Jimenez up.

Player development is much more complex than evaluating physical ability and tossing players into the deep end of the pool. There is much, much more to the process, and while I agree that Jimenez appears ready for a big-league promotion, I also understand that less time in the bigs this season means more time in the majors next season.

There is no reason to bring the kid up this year. He has torn up Double-A and mounted an assault on Triple-A pitching staffs that seems unfair. Still, I think he will play at least 50-100 games in Triple-A before he is called up. There are 27 games left in Charlotte’s regular season and although I am resolute in holding Jimenez down, I wouldn’t be surprised if the White Sox brought him up in September.

But remember, whatever you get this year will be taken off the beginning of next season. Which way do you want it?

Joe Maddon Changed His Mind About Using Robot Umpires For Balls And Strikes

By
Aldo Soto
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In 2017, Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon wrote an op-ed in the New York Post, in which among a few other things he advocated for the use of technology to call balls and strikes, or as you’ve seen or heard, “robot umpires.”

Here’s part of what Maddon wrote last July.

I love the replay system. I think it’s a great addition to the game. I think the next logical step to that would be balls and strikes being influenced and impacted, technologically speaking. It would be a more homogenized step on a daily basis.

So am I advocating for “robot umps”? If you’re looking for a level playing field where skill really wins, methodology wins, I think that’s the way to go. No one’s trying to influence the game, but umpires are human and make mistakes.

Could not have said it better myself. There’s supposed to be a set rule of what the strike zone is and umpires simply cannot keep the consistency needed to make it a level playing field for everyone involved. We see it every game, where one team gets calls and the other doesn’t and that even changes inning to inning, sometimes batter to batter and other times from one pitch to the next.

Technology is available to eliminate the “human element” of umpires making big mistakes. There’s no reason this sham should continue.

Yet, even after one of the most egregious missed calls of the year on Sunday, when Angel Hernandez called a pitch way off the outside corner for strike three to end the game, Maddon has all of sudden changed his mind on the whole robot umpiring thing.

Via the Chicago Tribune.

“One of the things I was convinced by a veteran umpire is that pitches that appear to be balls will be called strikes,” said Maddon, one day after Anthony Rizzo was called out on strikes by a pitch out of the strike zone to conclude a 10-6 loss to the Padres. “That’s even more troublesome with that kind of technology. There’s something to be said for that. I just think it’s a continual process from MLB regarding umpire training and rehashing. No different than what we do with our players, like more ground balls.

But more recently, Maddon asked his video department to check a high curve strike he thought resembled a pitch from a slow-pitch softball game.

“They checked, and it hit the (imaginary high strike zone) bar,” Maddon said. “That’s one reason I’m off (using robot umpires). There would be even more arguments.”

All right, we need to hire a private investigator to determine if Joe West is somehow blackmailing Joe Maddon into saying these things.

Ugh, Joe had so right a year ago and now he completely flipped on it.

TOO MANY PITCHES ARE ALREADY BEING CALLED WRONG!

Maybe things will change in 30 years or something.

Mock Drafting Is The Most Important Thing You Can Do This Season

By
Craig Bullock
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The key to assembling a strong, championship-caliber fantasy team is using all of the tools available for your success. Those owners that utilize more of the available tools tend to achieve more sustained success. Of all the tools available to the fantasy player, none is more important than the mock draft.

How important is mock drafting to your season? It’s a fair question to ask considering that the average player already has precious little time to devote to more fantasy football related endeavors above and beyond the week to week grind of studying, working the waiver and setting a lineup all season long.

Not to mention all the people in your league and life that will actively tease you for caring enough to mock draft. Yes, somehow there are still some people out there that don’t take fantasy football that seriously.

People who play fantasy, play for many different reasons. Money, bragging rights, fun and diversion from the soul-crushing monotony of the rat race are all on the list. The one thing that unites us all is the desire to win.

ROCK THE MOCK

So, can you win without mock drafting? Of course! You can also win by blacking out after one too many pre-draft brews with the bros and going full auto pick. You won’t win, but you could.

If you want to give yourself the best chance at winning, however, you want to be as prepared as possible for the entire season, draft and all. The reality is that you can’t win your league in the draft room but you sure can lose it. There is nothing more difficult to overcome than a bad draft. So if you are serious about winning your league, you had better be serious about nailing your draft.     

Mock drafting is one of the most important things a fantasy player can do to prepare for that draft. Mocks are mental calisthenics for fantasy players. Mock drafts help you to get a feel for how the drafting population at large is approaching players.

PLANNING

Us humans like to plan out everything. We plan our days, our weeks, our years and our decades. There is meal planning and outfit planning. We plan and rehearse conversations with our bosses when we plan on asking for a raise. The problem is that those plans rarely unfold the way we foresee. Life is unpredictable. The great Mike Tyson once famously quipped “that everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”

The same thing happens with draft plans. Most owners mentally map out the first three or four rounds based on personal preferences and biases only to have the draft immediately punch them right in the mouth. Those owners then go on tilt, the draft gets away from them and two hours later they look at their rosters with stomachs sinking faster than the Titanic after it got punched in the mouth by an iceberg.

Mock drafting is one of the best tools available to help you avoid the unforeseen icebergs in your real draft. Mocking can help contextualize the ADP (average draft position) numbers that captivate so many drafters. Mocks can help you test and retest multiple strategies such as RB/RB, Zero RB Theory, early TE, late QB etc. Mock drafts can help you build your cheat sheet (another very important tool for fantasy players).  

Whether you mock live on sites like ESPN or use quick, automated drafting like the invaluable Draft Wizard offered by Fantasypros, you will start to see patterns emerge. More importantly, you will become accustomed to the unpredictability of drafts. This will help you become elastic in your draft room, able to quickly and nimbly respond to the ever-evolving and chaotic nature of live drafts. You won’t be blindsided or left scrambling in your actual draft.

MORAL OF THE STORY

Success in fantasy is primarily based off of probability and preparedness. Mock drafting helps with both. The more you mock, the more benefit you gain from mocking. It is self-perpetuating. If your goal is to be as prepared as possible to win your league then you absolutely need to jump into a few mocks at various draft positions in the weeks before your draft.

Once you know the draft order for your league it’s time step up those mocks. Start drafting from your spot over and over again. Get a legitimate feel for how the draft is likely to unfold and compare those results with your original cheat sheet. Start to tweak your cheat sheet based off of data collected and sorted in your mocks. That way, on draft day you have a more realistic idea of how the draft is likely to unfold. Make sure to start mock drafting now so that you can win your championship later. Plus, mock drafting is fun! That is what fantasy football is all about: having fun. 

That Bum Angel Hernandez Admitted He Was Wrong, Now Quit Please

By
Aldo Soto
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The Chicago Cubs lost 10-6 on Sunday to the San Diego Padres, with the game ending on this strike three call on Anthony Rizzo by home plate umpire Angel Hernandez.

Rizzo was obviously pissed about the call and had a lengthy discussion with Hernandez.

After the game Rizzo called out the umpire, saying these calls happen too often.

Hernandez is still in Chicago Monday, umpiring the White Sox vs. Yankees series and the Chicago Tribune’s Paul Sullivan caught up with him.

Hernandez admitted he was wrong.

Umpires receive reviews of every game, and Hernandez said he saw a video of the pitch after the game. He confirmed Rizzo’s assessment of the call.

“It was a cut fastball, three inches off the plate,” Hernandez said. “Rizzo was right.”

“I’m not perfect,” Hernandez said.

OK, cool, he admitted he was wrong, although he was obviously wrong so not much different he could have said there, but how about taking the next step and quitting? Because yes, no one is perfect, but also Angel Hernandez isn’t very good at umpiring either.

Whatever, just keep having these awful umpires continually making the wrong calls.

Anthony Miller Just Showed He’s Fearless in Yet Another Way

By
Erik Lambert
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anthony miller

Chicago Bears wide receiver Anthony Miller has established himself as the darling of 2018 training camp. Except this time it’s not another underdog story that fans are latching onto. The general consensus from everybody who’s seen him up close is the same. This kid is legit and he’s got a chance to dominate right from the start in this new offense.

The evidence is right there in practice every day. Miller is already working with the first team offense. He’s going against starting corners like Kyle Fuller and Prince Amukamara all the time. These guys are proven veteran who helped the Bears defense finish 10th overall in the league last year. Both are also having strong camps and Miller has made each of them look like they might be the rookies on more than one occasion.

He is a confident young man. Nobody is going to outwork him and he’s prepared to do whatever it takes to succeed. Up until now, he’s kept the rookie mindset, focusing on his work. However, Miller is an outspoken person too. Not only is he active on Twitter, he also has his own blog. A place where he offers a look into his mindset.

It’s also where, in his most recent post, he showed how comfortable he’s becoming as a leader.

Anthony Miller promises greatness and also demands it from teammates

Most of the post, titled “Ready For Impact” was an assertion by Miller that this team is ready to take off. He’s learned so much already both from his fellow receivers like Allen Robinson and Taylor Gabriel along with veteran corners like Amukamara and Marcus Cooper. His most eye-opening statement though came during his praise for Mitch Trubisky.

Intended or otherwise, it feels like Miller may have slipped in a small critique for some of his fellow receivers.

“At the end of the day, I’ve got to focus on what got me in the league in the first place: my hands. I want Mitch to know that if he throws the ball my way that I am going to catch it – whatever the cost. Whether I have to go up and snag a pass or make a catch in traffic, there’s no excuse for drops in the league.”

It’s interesting that Miller would use that phrase. Drops are a theme that has followed the Bears receiving corps early this year. There’s been a number of problems with it in practice and then they had three brutal ones in the Hall of Fame game against Baltimore. One of which by Bennie Fowler that cost them a touchdown.

He’s not wrong. It’s just interesting that he said it. This is the latest sign that Miller isn’t going to wait for his turn at becoming a leader on this team. He’s going to seize it himself and dare anybody else to stop him. He already makes consistent plays in practice and is earning respect from teammates. The only thing left is for him to duplicate it in games.

He may be saying this stuff in his blog for now, but it wouldn’t surprise if he starts doing it vocally so everybody can hear it before this season is over.

David Ross Showing He Has A Great Eye For Talent

By
Aldo Soto
-

David Ross retired while on top, literally carried off the field as a World Series champion in 2016, with the Chicago Cubs and it looks like he can easily have a future in baseball in some capacity if he wants it.

Ross was briefly mentioned in rumors as a possible candidate to be the Cubs’ bench coach in 2018, but he said he wasn’t ready to jump all the way back in to baseball. He’s still an analyst on ESPN and does some work for the Cubs’ front office. Ross is also showing he has a good eye for talent.

One of the biggest surprises of the 2018 season for the Cubs has been the emergence of rookie David Bote. He’s been flying under the radar down in the minors, drafted in the 18th round back in 2012.

Bote may have been on some people’s radar, but coming into 2018, he certainly wasn’t as well known as he’s become, doing an admirable job filling in for Kris Bryant.

It turns out that Ross was at least one Cubs’ official who saw something special coming for Bote. During the weekend manager Joe Maddon shared this little nugget, saying it was Ross who came up to him during spring training and said David Bote was ready for The Show.

Bote only has 61 at-bats with the Cubs, but his value has been visible since day one. He’ll either make a great play on defense, or come up with a solid plate appearance and has the potential to hammer the ball hard, posting a .927 OPS in 28 games.

I’ve compared Bote to Ben Zobrist before, but even the 37-year-old veteran believes the rookie is a better player than he was at age 25.

Not so bad for Bote and for Ross, who is looking good right now with his recommendation of the new super utility player for the Cubs.

Avoid The Hype Train In Fantasy Football Drafts This Year

By
Craig Bullock
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This is “hype train” season in the NFL. Training camps are underway. Contract disputes are being settled. The first preseason games are right around the corner and every NFL fan is convinced that their team is playoff bound in 2018.

It’s easy to understand why fans would be so excited. We love football. We love new opportunity. Each new season is a clean slate in the mind of a fan. That 5-11 season from a year ago is ancient history. This is the year!

Unfortunately, it’s not just fans that think this way. It’s NFL reporters and writers too. They get swept up in the hype as well. Everything is fresh and shiny and new. Each team is brimming with potential. Most beat reporters and NFL writers put on rose-colored glasses this time of year. They try to convince everyone that the Jets are secretly really good. Or that the Bills don’t have the worst offensive line in football. Or that maybe, just maybe, this is the year the Dolphins win their division. Man, the AFC East is gross.

Your Job

Your job as a fantasy football owner is to cut through the bullcrap and ignore the fake hype. The last thing you want when you leave your draft room is a team full of Bills, Jets, and Dolphins.

The AFC East isn’t the only division full of pre-season hype that should probably be ignored. Let’s look at a team in another division. Take the Browns for instance. The Browns improved their backfield with the additions of Carlos Hyde and Nick Chubb. The quarterback room is better than its been in years with steady veteran Tyrod Taylor at the helm and electric rookie Baker Mayfield learning the ropes. The team brought in Jarvis Landry who has 400 catches in his first four years, which is more than anyone else in the first four seasons of a career in NFL history. On top of all of that, the Browns return talented players like Josh Gordon and Duke Johnson.

The Whole Story

That is a ton of hype! But it’s not the whole story. The hype train narrative leaves out many negative, hype-killing details of which the fantasy community needs to be aware. The Browns retained head coach Hugh Jackson despite his 1-31 record in Cleveland. The team ranked dead last in the league in point differential, turnovers and points scored over the past two years. They have been bottom of the barrel in just about every quarterback metric you can imagine. The team had a decent offensive line last year, ranked 14th by Pro Football Focus, but they lost Joe Thomas to retirement. That isn’t going to help those QB metrics improve by much.

What about the new players? Yes, Jarvis Landry was a target hog in Miami. And yes, he has built a solid reputation as an above average slot receiver in the NFL. Unfortunately, in Cleveland he and Duke Johnson will cannibalize each other’s targets, making each less attractive than they were last year. Carlos Hyde finished as an RB1 in fantasy last year, largely because of quarterbacks checking down out in San Fran. The problem remains, in Cleveland, the check downs go to Duke (and Landry). Is Hyde good enough to hold off the superior athlete Nick Chubb for the 1st and 2nd down duties? Fantasy owners shouldn’t want to spend much draft capital to find out.

The Cleveland Browns should be better this year but they won’t be a good team. It doesn’t take much to improve on 0-16, after all. Fill your fantasy football roster with players from good NFL teams. That doesn’t mean that Landry and Gordon don’t have places on fantasy squads this year. It just means you shouldn’t waste your draft capital by picking any Brown too early.

Be Smarter Than The Rest

Avoid the hype train as much as possible. Find articles and analysts with solid, grounded takes. Fantasy football is exciting but don’t get swept up in all the fluff floating around this time of year. Build your team by the numbers, look at the historical trends, the coaches and the schemes. Target the guys that will actually help you win and let all the other jerks in your league board the hype train to irrelevance. You can wave to them on your way to a championship.

NBA-MGM Gambling Partnership Sets Framework For Vegas NBA Team

By
Kevin Fiddler
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When, in late July, the NBA and WNBA announced a gambling partnership with MGM Resorts International, it turned quite a few heads. NBA commish Adam Silver — an outspoken proponent of legalized gambling — has taken the reigns in pro sports’ journey into legalized sports betting. Could this sudden openness to gambling be a precursor to a potential NBA team here in Las Vegas? Quite possibly.

The gambling partnership with the NBA, WNBA and MGM Resorts International is the first partnership of its kind with a major sports league in the United States. The NBA and WNBA will provide MGM with official NBA/WNBA data for its betting platform. It will also work with the league, which has had its gambling issues in the past (see Tim Donaghy), to help prevent fraud and game-fixing. MGM will also have the right to use NBA and WNBA trademarks and logos in coordinated marketing plans with each league.

“Collaboration will result in the best possible gaming and entertainment experience for consumers through the use of accurate, real-time N.B.A. and W.N.B.A. data, and our collective efforts to maintain and enhance the integrity of our games,” Silver said in a statement.

MGM Resorts International was pleased with the gambling partnership.

“Integrating the NBA’s assets and having official NBA data showcased across the MGM Resorts platforms will provide us with a distinct advantage and instill more confidence in knowing that our data is directly from the NBA,” MGM chief executive Jim Murren told the New York Times last week.

The gambling partnership is the expected next step in the process of integrating legalized gambling into the sports culture of the United States after decades of major sports leagues distancing their organizations from official association with gambling. In July, the Supreme Court struck down the federal law banning sports betting in most states. The move has paved the way for major changes in how the sports industry can do business in the U.S.

With that said, MGM Resorts International owns the Las Vegas Aces, so it’s more than likely MGM has its sights set on partnering its women’s team with a men’s team. MGM is also a majority stake owner in the T-Mobile Arena, and its CEO made some interesting comments at its most recent investor meeting in May.

“I would expect that Las Vegas will have an NBA team within the next five years, if not sooner. That team would likely play at T-Mobile (Arena).”

—MGM Resorts CEO Jim Murren

This publication reported back in June about a few rumors from reputable sources here in town insistent the Los Angeles Clippers would be making a move to Las Vegas sooner, than later. Much of it had to do with this source’s clientele explicitly telling them it was coming. With a lawsuit bogging down Clippers owner Steve Ballmer’s potential stadium plans in Inglewood, Calif., and retired United States Senator Barbara Boxer joining the fight against a stadium in that location, Las Vegas may again reap the benefits of political infighting in California.

Sloppy seconds? Not so much

The Clippers have been third fiddle in L.A. for far too long. The team gets third priority in choosing calendar dates behind the LeBron James-led Lakers and the Golden Knights chief rival, the Los Angeles Kings. This poses a logistical nightmare for the team and puts the Clippers at a disadvantage compared to its inter-city rival.

While Seattle fans are clinging to hope the NBA will return the SuperSonics to Grunge City, U.S.A, many are looking at the success the Golden Knights had in their first season, as well as the Las Vegas Aces’ strong showing, when citing Vegas as a frontrunner for a new NBA franchise.

WNBA games on ESPN2 have seen a 39-percent improvement from last year, the best start for the league since 2013. With an additional 36-percent increase in ratings overall, superfans like The Ringers’ Shea Serrano believe it has everything to do with the emergence of the Aces and the Las Vegas pro sports scene.

Major League Baseball has already announced its intent to bring a team to Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Raiders move to Sin City in 2020 (possibly as early as 2019), leaving the NBA as the lone major pro sports organization without a Las Vegas presence.

Translation: It’s only a matter of time. The NBA has cleared a path to move to Vegas sooner, not later, and — especially if this Inglewood stadium issue continues to put the Clippers in a holding pattern — Las Vegas may sneak in and pilfer the “Clip Show” like it did the Oakland Raiders.

No pro sports team should have to share its arena with another pro sports team in the same league, let alone the same division and conference. It’s a major reason why the Clippers are thought of as the Lakers’ weak little brother. The Clippers can move into the spotlight here in Vegas, keep the fan base (which is only four hours down the road) and move right into T-Mobile Arena, which has an excellent relationship with its partner, MGM Resorts International.

Is the NBA coming the Vegas any time soon? My source says “bet on it.” My gut says, as long as political heavyweights fight the new Inglewood stadium, we inch ever so closer to our own NBA team here in Sin City. If not the Clippers, maybe it’ll be the New Orleans Pelicans or the Orlando Magic. Neither seem like a fit, while the Clippers are regional and have a strong west coast fan base.

The NBA/MGM gambling partnership has cleared open a path to another pro sports team in Vegas. Perhaps, in its arrogance in landing LeBron and his hype, the Lakers underestimate the power of Las Vegas. Anyone with a brain can see how the Clippers vs Lakers would make for a stellar rivalry within the NBA Pacific Division.

It could be epic…like a “lightsaber duel between a young Anakin Skywalker vs sort-of-young Obi-Wan Kenobi” kind of epic.

Bears Defense Got a Fun Surprise From Matt Nagy at Practice

By
Erik Lambert
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matt nagy

The Chicago Bears defense has been enjoying themselves thus far at training camp. They’ve been the superior unit during most practices and were clearly ahead of the offense based on results from the Hall of Fame game last Thursday. Usually, when things like this happen it’s easy for a group to get a little complacent, a little cocky thinking they’re pretty good. So it falls to the head coach to find creative ways to keep it interesting for them.

This was the test Matt Nagy faced over the weekend. Saturday was one of the sloppiest practices of camp for his team and that was something he couldn’t let slide. So he switched up the schedule that evening so the players could view the Hall of Fame induction speech by Brian Urlacher, hoping his words might serve as a reminder of why they play the game.

It certainly had an effect as the next day saw one of the best practices of the year for his team. Now Nagy just had to find a way to build some momentum going into Monday. His solution proved to be quite creative and certainly created a buzz among the players, especially on defense.

Matt Nagy took snaps at QB to throw against the defense in drills

At one point during drills, the quarterbacks got pulled off the field and it was Nagy and quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone who took some snaps throwing against the defense. The two coaches actually delivered some nice throws, making an effort to test the cornerbacks down the field. It looked like they’d get the last laugh, but it seems Nagy got a little too carried away and he was intercepted.

Who was it? Who else but Kyle Fuller, the leading man of the Bears secondary. Nagy sounded a little upset and irritated the young cornerback got him after practice.

The Bears head coach is reminding everybody that he understands a vital element to football. Discipline of the players is good but finding ways to keep it fun is just as important. Nothing would thrill a young defender more than talking trash with his head coach and intercepting him during drills.

It was also a way for the players to gain a better connection to the coaches. A reminder that in the end, they’re all striving towards the same goal. That’s a good message to send because it will take a total team effort for this organization to avoid its fifth-straight losing season in 2018.

Mitch Trubisky would not be outshined though

While several people admitted Nagy threw better than they expected, it seems like the Bears starting quarterback refused to be outplayed. For the second-straight practice, Mitch Trubisky demonstrated a precision and command of the offense he has struggled to find in the past couple of weeks. His passes are on time and on target. He’s getting a feel for his receivers and the ball is coming out with more authority.

“It’s starting to click. Slowing down for me,” he said after practice. It’s evidenced both by the impressive throws he made and also the fact he went his first day of full pads without an interception. That’s certainly a welcome sign and another reason why the offensive players sound so confident about where things are headed.

Players Reveal Their Favorite Mitch Trubisky Leadership Moment

By
Erik Lambert
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mitch trubisky

Sometimes it’s the weirdest things that can get an NFL locker room to buy into as a leader. Despite already winning MVP prior to 1994, Hall of Famer Steve Young said it was his blowup at head coach George Seifert during a loss to Philadelphia that finally got the San Francisco 49ers to truly follow him. It would seem a similarly surprising moment last year galvanized many on the Chicago Bears roster to buy into Mitch Trubisky.

Was it his crazy fourth quarter scramble that put the team in position to force overtime against Detroit? No. What about the superb scramble and pass to Kendall Wright to help beat Baltimore? Not that either. As it turns out according to Jeff Dickerson of ESPN, a number of people look to a loss as a big watershed moment for their purchasing of the Trubisky hype.

“Several players point to the season finale against the Minnesota Vikings when things just weren’t clicking. By the third quarter, the Bears were down 23-7. Chicago’s only score came on a 59-yard punt return. Staring down Minnesota defensive tackle Linval Joseph in the end zone, Trubisky panicked and flicked the ball.

He was called for intentional grounding, resulting in two points for the Vikings. Shortly after, Trubisky gathered the wide receivers together on the sideline and said: “OK, we got this. We can’t beat ourselves, we’ve put in all this work.” The Bears lost but finished with a scoring drive.”

Mitch Trubisky showed zero quit in brutal conditions that day

The situation facing Trubisky in that game was unenviable. He was playing with a bad receiving corp against the #1 defense in the NFL on the road with a coaching staff that likely knew they were getting fired. The desire to fight for a victory in those conditions would’ve been almost non-existent. It fell to the young quarterback to set the example by continuing to fight.

The numbers didn’t really stand out following that intentional grounding in the second quarter. Trubisky ended up completing less than half his subsequent passes. What stood out more was his unwillingness to grind out the clock and just get out of there. He continued to attack the Vikings down the field through the air. Of the 13 passes he completed, four of them went for 20 yards or more.

Mike Nugent hit a 55-yard field goal to make it 23-10 but what some forget is Trubisky almost made it 23-17. He got the Bears to the Minnesota 2-yard line with just over two minutes left in the game. Unfortunately, they weren’t able to punch it in on 4th and goal. The Vikings got the ball back and ran out the clock.

Fans choose not to remember this because it was the end of the season and the Bears were out of the playoff picture. Yet for the other players on that team, it was still a game to play and for their young quarterback, it was a game he was doing everything possible to win. That means a lot to men who pour so much into every season. They finally have somebody who will fight for them.

It’s Trubisky’s show now.

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