Chicago Bears: 3 reasons Pat Shurmur should be next OC

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2. History of elevating mediocre quarterbacks

If Shurmur was to come to Chicago, he would be part of a roster that is ready to win now, short of a few holes needing to be filled. Similarly, the 2013 Eagles and 2017 Vikings had strong rosters and simply needed the right coaching staff in place.

Now, when looking at the offensive weapons, those 2013 Eagles are a bit different. They had an All Pro running back in McCoy, but at wide receiver? It was DeSean Jackson and Riley Cooper as the no. 1 and no. 2 options. Crazy enough, Cooper finished with eight touchdown receptions that season. Talk about elevating mediocrity — Cooper was no Pro Bowler.

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Who was the quarterback for those 2013 Eagles? It was none other than the Super Bowl hero, Nick Foles, who threw 27 touchdowns to just two picks that year.

Sure, Chip Kelly was calling the plays that season. But, if Shurmur came to Chicago, Nagy could still retain play-calling duties in a similar fashion.

Let’s look at that 2017 Vikings team again. It was Case Keenum under center for those Vikings, and as we have come to find out, that 2017 season would go down as Keenum’s best season as a pro — and it’s not close.

Keenum completed 67.6 percent of his passes for 3,547 yards, 22 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Shurmur kept a run-first game plan while working towards Keenum’s strengths. Keenum was sneaky mobile and above average outside of the pocket — a lot like Trubisky, only less mobile than the Bears’ starter.

Both Foles and Keenum had career years under Shurmur. If we’re really talking about Trubisky leading the troops this next season, there might not be a better option than Shurmur to help elevate his play.

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