Chicago Bears: Mitch Trubisky can return under one condition
The Chicago Bears should only bring Trubisky back under one condition.
Fresh off a two-game win streak and Chicago Bears fans are doing what they do best — arguing on social media. Today’s topic is, well, the same one fans have been arguing about for the last four years — Mitchell Trubisky — but with a slightly different spin.
Rather than debate whether he’s a bust, or who is most to blame for his failures, fans find themselves arguing over something they probably never thought possible just four weeks ago. That’s because the debate is whether the Bears should bring Trubisky back next year.
The Bears declined Mitch’s fifth-year option, so if they do want to bring him back they’ll either have to franchise tag him (which would be insane considering it’ll cost them around $25 million) or they can try to re-sign him to a cheap, one-year deal. Realistically, the latter is the only option.
However, if the Bears do decide to bring him back on a one-year deal, it has to come with the condition that the team drafts a quarterback in April.
Look, many fans are ready to spike the football and declare Mitch back after a four-game sample, two of which came against two of the worst defenses in the league. The problem is there is a 40+ game sample in which Mitch’s performance raised serious doubts over whether he can play well against the league’s better defenses. While Nagy has finally adapted and simplified things for him, the reality is rolling him out and cutting the field in half is not sustainable. At some point, he will need to do the things he hasn’t yet shown he can do.
So it is reasonable that many, despite his recent success, will be skeptical of the performance, especially considering the competition. That skepticism is further justified considering that the Bears’ management doesn’t exactly have the best track record at addressing the position.
The biggest fear is that the organization — mainly Ryan Pace (whose chances of returning grow exponentially with each win) will re-commit exclusively to Mitch the way it has in the past. Despite insisting on the need to draft a quarterback every year, Pace selected Mitch and decided that was enough.
Consequently, the team has to recommit itself to addressing the position and start drafting the position. Whether it’s an early selection, a late selection, or both, the organization needs to start acting like it understands how important the position is and spend draft capital on it.
If they can be objective, and push forward with the task of finding their generational quarterback, then bringing Mitch back for another year will become more palatable, even to his staunchest detractors.