By the look of things, the 2020 free agent market could be unexpectedly rich in quarterbacks. Something that is quite rare. Yet due to various circumstances, it looks like several names with at least some prestige or credibility will be seeking a job with another team. Most believe that the Chicago Bears will be heavily involved in those festivities. Chief among the options they’re expected to pursue is former #2 overall pick Marcus Mariota.
It’s not a hard connection to make. Mariota has had some success in the league. He’s 26-years old. One could argue he was mismanaged by the Tennessee Titans which led to his struggles the past couple of seasons. GM Ryan Pace was noted for being a big fan of him coming out of Oregon in 2015. Last but not least? Mark Helfrich is the Bears’ offensive coordinator. He was Mariota’s head coach in college.
However, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune believes there is one big obstacle that hasn’t been accounted for.
“The Bears liked Mariota a good deal when he was coming out in 2015, and offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich has experience working with him from their days together at Oregon. That being said, there’s close to zero chance the Bears would add Mariota to the mix this offseason, at least as long as Mitch Trubisky is on the roster. Mariota is represented by Rep 1 Sports, the same agency that represents Trubisky. There’s no way Rep 1 would want two clients competing for a starting job on the same roster because that automatically relegates one of them to backup status.”
Bears unlikely to dump Trubisky for Marcus Mariota
This does present a problem. The odds the Bears actually parting ways with Mitch Trubisky in 2020 are remote. While it’s expected the team will definitely bring in competition, they won’t cut or trade him. This means what Biggs says is true. Mariota will be encouraged to avoid competing with Trubisky in Chicago because they want both players to have a shot at being starters again next year. That doesn’t happen if they’re on the same roster together. So it’s a safe assumption that scenario might not be one the Bears pursue.
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Besides, it’s a fair argument that Mariota is a lot like Trubisky anyway. Why have two of the same type of QB?
It’s more likely they’ll seek an option who is more precise from the pocket. A quarterback who can read defenses well and find the open man. There will be options including Philip Rivers, Teddy Bridgwater, Eli Manning, Drew Brees, and Tom Brady. Any one of those guys could function quite well in this system under Nagy. This is not to say Mariota is impossible. He could just ignore the advice of his agents and wish to reunite with his former coach, confident he can beat out Trubisky.
However, the evidence says that won’t be the case.
