Second-guessing is just…well…second nature for Chicago Bears fans these days. Especially when it comes to the quarterback position. All anybody can think about is obvious. Did the team make the right choices leading up to this quarterback competition? Namely, did they get the right guy to push Mitch Trubisky? While Nick Foles has plenty of admirers, there are some who think he’s too much of a career backup to be called a genuine threat. Meanwhile, a former MVP like Cam Newton was on the market for months and eventually signed in New England for pennies.
This is a sticking point that people just can’t let go. Newton is a proven success as a starter. A multi-time Pro Bowler. One of the best athletes to ever play quarterback. Some feel the Bears were just too afraid of the personality and the many quirks that often made him difficult to deal with in Carolina.
Former Bears scouting director Greg Gabriel doesn’t believe that had anything to do with. Newton not only wasn’t going to be their choice. He wasn’t even discussed as he explained on Bears 100 Proof.
“As Foles just said, he knows the terminology. Sure he does. So he’s not going to feel uncomfortable going into this situation. Going back a little, that’s one of the reasons they went out and traded for him. Because he knows the offense. Don’t forget when they made the trade, it was after this pandemic had already started…
…They felt a lot more comfortable with a player with experience in this particular offense then say going out and getting Cam Newton. You know I think Cam Newton was never in the conversation.”
Cam Newton had too many things working against him
To many the argument that Foles had critical experience in the Bears’ style of offense is weak. A team should always strive to get the best player possible. Especially when it’s at quarterback. Now if this were a normal offseason? That skepticism would be warranted. As everybody knows by now, this offseason is anything but normal.
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Newton would’ve had no minicamps or OTAs. He’d have arrived ice cold in training camp with zero practices to help him learn a complicated offensive system that would be completely foreign to him. Then add no preseason reps to work off the rust on top of it? There is no question the guy was once the cream of the NFL crop, but it’s hard to imagine him solving everything under those conditions.
Foles might not be as talented, but his prior knowledge of the offense and connection with the coaching staff allows him to get a head start in being ready for this season. That sort of thing matters.
