Mitch Trubisky did nothing on opening night to silence his doubters. If anything, he gave them fodder to only chirp louder than ever. He threw 45 passes for 228 yards and a backbreaking interception in the end zone. He probably should’ve had two more interceptions. Once again he flopped in front of a national audience in a game the Chicago Bears should’ve won. The most discouraging thing of all? Trubisky showed little progress in his game.
One of the harshest criticisms came from Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander. He stated that Green Bay knew if they could take away Trubisky’s first read on pass plays, he would most likely look for an outlet to run. This is exactly what played out in the game. Trubisky stayed locked on his first options, stalled when they weren’t there and either tried to run, took a sack, or threw a late pass that was either incomplete or almost intercepted.
Therein lay the problem. Trubisky, for all his hard work, still hasn’t mastered the vital facet that separates good quarterbacks from everyone else: processing speed. What exactly does that mean? A simple way to put is a quarterback’s ability to recognize from the snap if his first read is covered, then moving on to the next one in succession until they finally find the open man. Here is an example courtesy of Drew Brees from a couple of years ago via Inside The Pylon.
Mitch Trubisky won’t come off the first read fast enough
This is where you see the starkest difference with Trubisky. Here’s a play from the first half of the wild card loss to Philadelphia. He’s in the shotgun on 3rd and 10. He takes the snap and starts looking left to Allen Robinson, his usual primary read. Now normally when a QB hits his back step, they would realize Robinson is covered. Trubisky, however, continues to stare him down, waiting for him to come open. He waits, waits, waits.
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This allows the Philadelphia pressure to set in. Not until four seconds into the play does Trubisky finally come off that read to his right. By then the pressure flushes him out of the pocket and he’s forced to make an awkward and late throw in the flat to Jordan Howard. A throw that is nearly picked off and would’ve gone for a touchdown.
Had Trubisky gone through his progression more quickly, he would’ve found Howard sooner who was definitely open. It might not have gone for a first down but it’s likely he would’ve gotten a nice chunk of yardage and at least given the Bears options. Maybe they could go for it on 4th and short? Or they would have a better setup for punter Pat O’Donnell to pin the Eagles deep in their own territory.
The subsequent punt resulted in a touchback. Luckily a holding call on the Eagles allowed a second attempt that was five yards closer. O’Donnell then pinned Philadelphia at their own one-yard line.
This happened again on the crucial play of the opener.
Again he’s in the shotgun. Again it’s 3rd and 10. Trubisky takes the snap and immediately looks at Robinson who is running a corner route to the end zone. He waits and waits. The pressure sets in and instead of moving to another progression he turns it loose. Robinson is blanketed by the corner already and the safety (Adrian Amos) is reading the quarterback all the way. The ball is overthrown and intercepted.
If Trubisky had dropped his eyes when he should’ve, he would’ve seen Tarik Cohen open. It may not have quite been for a first down but it absolutely would’ve given the Bears options on 4th and short. This wasn’t the only instance either. Trubisky had them the entire game. Green Bay committed to taking away his first read and forced him to play quarterback. He didn’t do it. This leaves the unenviable question.
Can he do it?
He now has 27 games of starting experience in the NFL. Yet he keeps showing the tendencies of a rookie. At some point, the patience and excuses will run out. He has 15 games left to show people he can change. The problem is learning something like this is the hardest thing anyone can do in the NFL. There isn’t a close second. Unless he embraces the position as it’s meant to be played, he’ll never realize his full potential.
