Okay, here we go again. Do people realize that comparing two players at the same position from the same draft class after just one season typically isn’t wise? There’s a reason experts insist one waits three years for proper confirmation on whether a player is good or not. That’s usually how long it takes for most college prospects to acclimate to the NFL. Yet here we are again. Mitch Trubisky vs. Patrick Mahomes.
Chicago Bears fans are a reactionary bunch. Every time a young quarterback starts to play well, the pessimism ramps up because their young quarterback isn’t doing that yet. So one can imagine how they felt watching Mahomes, drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs the same year Trubisky was, hung 10 touchdowns passes total on his first two opponents of 2018.
It’s been a tremendous performance thus far including that epic 6-TD performance at Heinz Field against the Pittsburgh Steelers. One couldn’t ask for a better start to a young career. Is Mahomes poised to become a star in the NFL? Yes. Then again that was the case even before he was drafted. Should he be compared directly to Trubisky? No, here’s why.
Mitch Trubisky vs. Patrick Mahomes was handicapped from the start
A lot of people might be shocked by this, but the fact is Mahomes is still significantly more experienced than Trubisky is. He started 28 games in college at Texas Tech dating back to 2014. Combined with his three starts in the NFL, that makes for 31 total. Trubisky, even with his 13 starts dating back to last year, still only has 26 including his time in college.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
A five-game advantage may not sound like much but one must remember another key factor to add. Mahomes has spent his entire time in the NFL learning the same offense. The moment he got to Kansas City, he was dropped into the Andy Reid system. He spent a full season and two full offseasons prior to this year learning everything about that playbook. It’s not a coincidence he came out and played well immediately. He was prepared.
Trubisky had to spend one offseason and a full regular season learning under John Fox and Dowell Loggains, who proved woefully unequal to their task. Then the young QB had to start over from scratch under Matt Nagy and Mark Helfrich. He’s had to play catchup from the beginning and it shows. He is learning as he goes.
One must also remember the arsenals involved
The Chiefs have spent several seasons building that offense they have. Look at their key players: Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, Kareem Hunt, and a majority of their offensive line all have at least one year of experience playing in that system. More often than not it’s two or more. They know how to execute it at a high level because they’re not thinking too much.
This entire Bears offense is brand new. Jordan Howard is their only notable skill position player who was acquired prior to this year. Allen Robinson, Taylor Gabriel, and Trey Burton arrived in March. Anthony Miller came in the draft a month later. They’re just as inexperienced in this system as Mitch is.
That’s before reminding everybody that Robinson is coming off a torn ACL and Burton has never been a starter before in his NFL career. Miller is a rookie. Expecting these guys to light up the scoreboards right out of the gate was never realistic. Playing offense at a high level in this game is difficult. It takes time. Kansas City didn’t suddenly get good at this.
They’ve been painstakingly building it for over five seasons. Mahomes is reaping the rewards of their work. Trubisky deserves more time to actually get somewhere remotely close to that level of comfort before passing judgment on whether he can be as good. Until then these comparisons need to stop.
