With training camp and preseason, the prevalent question for Bears fans is obvious. Could Mitch Trubisky somehow overtake Mike Glennon to start this season? Yes GM Ryan Pace made it clear Glennon was the planned starter. It’s a perfectly logical idea. Give the veteran the early shot while the rookie sits and learns. Under ideal circumstances Trubisky doesn’t have to play a down until the coaches feel he’s ready.
Problem is the NFL is anything but accommodating to team plans. It’s the most mentally and physically challenging game in the country, if not the world. Many able men have been broken by it. Glennon is no exception to that rule. He could easily succumb to a freak injury or simply struggle under the pressure of expectations.
Longtime award-winning Chicago sports columnist Rick Telander pointed this out during a recent article. He feels the Bears should embrace the opportunity to start Trubisky if it comes up. After all, history shows that there really is no way to predict whether a young quarterback will be successful or not. Regardless if he’s young and inexperienced.
Mitch Trubisky is no different from other questioned college QBs
“Maybe you’ll recall Steelers rookie quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, 22, going 13-0 as a starter in 2004, leading his team to the AFC Championship Game. A valuable tidbit: Roethlisberger’s yards per pass attempt — 8.9 his rookie year — is still the best of his 13-year career.
That too far back?
Then try Seahawks rookie Russell Wilson in 2012. All the third-round pick did was throw for 3,118 yards and 26 touchdowns, rush for 489 yards, take Seattle to the playoffs and make the Pro Bowl.
There were knocks against each young man before he played a down.
Roethlisberger was from a weak school and conference — Miami of Ohio, the MAC — and Wilson was so short, he could eat beans off a dwarf’s head.
Yep, those flaws certainly have held back those two, who’ve been to eight Pro Bowls and won three Super Bowls between them.”
The fact is there have been all sorts of quarterbacks who looked ideal coming out of college. Ones with plenty of experience, a big arm, great athleticism and appeared smart. Yet they failed. It’s proof that great NFL quarterbacks are a rare breed who are wired a specific way. Sometimes that wiring can appears in the most unlikely of bodies or backgrounds.
Subscribe to the BFR podcast and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
There is just no telling how the guys will respond to adversity until they face it in live action. That’s the problem for Chicago. They could easily prepare Trubisky for two years on the bench and he could still end up being a flop. At which point they will have wasted so much time for nothing. Why not get him out there sooner than later to find out?
Fear of mistakes and beatings are overblown
Most of the concerns regarding this issue are centered around two things. What if Trubisky loses confidence by making mistakes or what if he gets the tar beat out of him? Well Telander had a quick answer for that one too.
“Everybody always is worried a team will destroy a rookie QB by putting him in a game too early in his career. Yes, some would-be pros have been demolished that way.
You could say Troy Aikman’s career was almost cannonballed when he started 11 games as a rookie in 1989, threw 9 TD passes, 18 interceptions, was nearly assassinated by angry blitzers and defensive linemen, going 0-11 in the process.
Everybody points to Aikman as the damage that can be done. But he survived, learned and, ahem, is now in the Hall of Fame.”
Dan Fouts, another Canton inductee, threw just six touchdowns to 13 interceptions his rookie year. He was also sacked 14 times in just six games. Not counting the litany of other hits he took. That didn’t stop him from setting all sorts of passing records by the time he’d retired. It comes down to the player working through the problems and the team building around him properly. Look at most of the big failures and it’s often a result of poor coaching and limited talent around the quarterback.
This is the next test the Bears have to take. They’ve taken some good early steps with Jordan Howard at running back and their excellent interior offensive line. It’s at least enough to warrant giving Trubisky the opportunity if it comes up.
