Chicago Bears: Trade for Gardner Minshew, not Nick Foles

With the NFL trade deadline fast approaching, the Chicago Bears should consider trading for breakout Jacksonville Jaguars rookie quarterback, Gardner Minshew, rather than established veteran, Nick Foles.

If only Mitch Trubisky remembered how to play like a franchise quarterback for the 3-3 Chicago Bears… that’s what fans everywhere are currently wondering. With better play from their third-year starter, the Bears could be in first place in the NFC North, rather than licking their wounds from another lackluster performance this past Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.

Trubisky has played more like a backup than an established confident starter for the Bears, whose championship aspirations are now quickly evaporating. The once vaulted Bears defense led by Khalil Mack is worn out from having to go back on the field over and over again because their offense can hardly sustain a long drive.

Head coach, Matt Nagy is clearly frustrated because he’s had to dumb-down his once creative offense in order to compensate for Trubisky’s lack of feel for the quarterback position. It’s become evident that this Bears’ season is going to be a major disappointment with Trubisky under center unless he remembers what reliable quarterback play is on a routine basis.

While Trubisky, now in his third NFL season, is unlikely to play like the franchise savior the organization envisioned when they traded up to draft him number two overall in 2017, the fact that he can’t even play like a decent game-manager is a major problem.

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This is why the Ryan Pace must go out and trade for a quarterback in the coming days to help elevate the Bears’ disgruntled offense. Which quarterback should the Bears trade for though? Marcus Mariota seems like a solid option, given his ties with Bears’ offensive coordinator, Mark Helfrich. How about Teddy Bridgewater? What if those quarterbacks aren’t available? Nick Foles might be a nice option, but he’s over 30 years old, and unfortunately is injury prone.

A better, cheaper option at the quarterback position is trading for rookie breakout star, Gardner Minshew. Drafted in the sixth round of this past draft, Minshew has made the most of his starting opportunity for the Jacksonville Jaguars ever since former Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles went down in Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Minshew lacks prototypical size and arm strength at the quarterback position, yet he makes up for his limitations with deadly accurate throws, and crafty creativity to move around the pocket, making impressive plays with his quick feet. He’s thrown 10 touchdowns against only two interceptions at this point, despite playing with a shaky offensive line and an injured receiving core.

With Foles practicing again, the Jaguars will have to decide soon whether to commit long-term to their $88 million offseason acquisition, or to keep rolling with Minshew. If the Jaguars lose on Sunday to the New York Jets, they would be 3-5, and their playoff hopes would be on life support.

At 3-5, what if the Jaguars decided to then trade Minshew to the Bears if they receive an offer in exchange that they couldn’t refuse by Tuesday’s trade deadline? The NFL has seen some strange things happen over the years, so anything is possible at this point, especially if Trubisky doesn’t rebound against the Los Angeles Chargers.

In Minshew, the Bears would have a much more exciting quarterback that fans would instantly fall in love with, given his quirky personality and “Ditka-like” mustache. He might even save the Bears’ spiraling season, something Trubisky has yet to prove capable of doing.