Chicago Bears: Like it or not, Mitchell Trubisky isn’t a draft bust

After 44-games with the Chicago Bears, Mitchell Trubisky was benched in favor of Nick Foles.

It’s come to a disappointing finish for Mitchell Trubisky and the Chicago Bears. This is the team Trubisky wanted to be on after meeting with them in 2017 before the draft. After being picked, it was all smiles for Trubisky and general manager Ryan Pace. What happened to that?

Trubisky, in his first season, went 4-8, throwing just over 2,000 yards with seven-touchdowns and seven-interceptions. In his second season, the team hired head coach Matt Nagy. Trubisky took a major jump, throwing 24-touchdowns to 12-interceptions. He went 11-3 as a starter and won the division. Everything was good in the city of Chicago. They found their quarterback!

Something happened after the playoff loss to the Eagles to Trubisky and Nagy. In 2019, Trubisky started the season rough, having two poor showings against the Packers and the Broncos back-to-back weeks.

From a distance, smart fans saw the shift between him and Coach Nagy after a Monday Night Football game against the Redskins. During that game, a mad Matt Nagy told Trubisky to “shut the (bleep) up” when the two were talking during a timeout. After that, Trubisky went on to throw a beautiful touchdown, but the divide was there.

Trubisky would struggle during the 2019 season, even though he had a torn labrum in his left shoulder, which needed surgery in the 2019 offseason. He wore a vest, which he admitted was uncomfortable and potentially could have negatively impacted his throws during the 2019 NFL season. Some fans believe that is part of the reason he struggled, others just want Nick Foles to help them move on from Trubisky.

In 2020, Trubisky started the season 2-0. He’d get benched three quarters into Sunday’s game against the Falcons. Even though he was losing when he was benched, Trubisky gets credited with the win, due to a poor stat that gives the quarterback who starts the game the win/loss, even if they don’t finish it.

I’ll admit, it caught me off guard. Trubisky did throw a poor interception, but it wasn’t benching worthy. It seems to many “Trubisky Truthers” that Nagy was waiting for a moment to bench Trubisky to put his guy Foles in.

So, is Trubisky a draft bust? Heck no. He has a winning record in Chicago (26-18). He didn’t have the mental issues many busts had, like Ryan Leaf. Leaf is a guy Trubisky has been compared to by fans for no good reason. Trubisky won a division championship for God’s sake. He was successful, way more successful than the average quarterback that doesn’t make it in the NFL.

Likely, he won’t wear a Bears’ jersey next season, even if he gets another chance to start later down the line. Nagy has moved on from him, and it seems like Ryan Pace has admitted his mistakes and will too to keep his job.

This is a crappy, heartbreaking situation and I don’t like it. I understand he struggled last season, he played himself into this situation, but fans like me believed in him so much. A coach has to do what they feel is right to win football games and Trubisku understands that.

Trubisky’s career is far from over though. He will get a chance on a different team next season. Whether he goes into a situation like Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota did this season and backs up a solid quarterback to learn the game at an NFL level or he goes to compete for a starting job on a team with a struggling quarterback, he’ll have a job in 2021.

Whether you’re happy about this or not, fans have to admit, he wasn’t a bust. He wasn’t the elite quarterback for this franchise that many expected him to be, but he wasn’t terrible. The Bears won games with Trubisky.

Trubisky was above average to borderline elite when he played his best, and he was below average when he was off. Certainly, he wasn’t a bust, and he wasn’t the worst quarterback in the NFL.

I’m betting on Trubisky to have a solid career no matter where he ends up. It’s a bad ending to a promising story, but he can still write his wrongs somewhere else. Trubisky is a great guy with a big heart and a great work ethic. That will pay off somewhere in the NFL, the same way it did for Ryan Tannehill and Alex Smith. If this is the end here, thank you Mitch. If he gets another chance, let’s give the city a show before you send off.