Everybody seems to think they have a clear picture in mind now. They know what the Chicago Bears plan to do. Nick Foles was brought in via trade from Jacksonville with a singular purpose. To push Mitch Trubisky in a competition. Hopefully, this lights a fire under the fourth-year quarterback and finally gets him to play up to his full potential.
Except it might not be like that at all. Some closer to the team have caught rumblings that it goes beyond that. Foles isn’t competition. He is a replacement. Adam Jahns of The Athletic alluded to this in his latest article.
“1. Foles is more than ‘competition,’ he’s arguably the in-house leader
Regardless of what the Bears said publicly, Trubisky was never considered their unquestioned starter heading into free agency. The team went through the 2019 season, saw what everyone saw and had their own questions and concerns.
It was thought that Trubisky not only needed to be pushed but potentially replaced if need be.”
That was the first head jerker.
However, not long after Jeff Hughes of Da Bears Blog one-upped him. Hughes was first on the hiring of Juan Castillo and the signing of Robert Quinn, so his sources are good.
“The Bears have been trying to trade Mitch Trubisky for weeks. Nobody wants him. I don’t see him in a competition with Foles moving forward because I’m not convinced Trubisky will stick around.”
Mitch Trubisky era might well be over and done
That is startling, but not surprise at the same time. Everybody saw Trubisky last year. It was impossible to miss. His lack of confidence. The inability to read defenses properly. Constantly missing open receivers. Being overwhelmed by good teams. Nobody disputes the talent but that is only half of the equation. Plenty of talented quarterbacks have come and gone in the NFL doing little in their careers. Why? They couldn’t figure out the finer details of their position.
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Reading coverages. Adjusting protections. Knowing when receivers will change their routes and where they’ll be. Footwork within the pocket. Being able to sense pressure. Ball security. These are all things top quarterbacks must be aware of to have success in the pros. Trubisky just hasn’t shown any consistent mastery of any of them.
Foles isn’t a long-term solution. He is a solid veteran with a proven track record who understands how to play the position properly. He’s a step in the right direction. Somebody who can be a sort of placeholder while the Bears try to figure out where to find that long-term franchise guy. The guy they hoped Trubisky would become.
