The comparisons between Mitchell Trubisky vs. Patrick Mahomes are nothing new. They’ve been happening for the last three seasons, and they’ll continue for the duration of their careers. But they’ll be at their loudest Sunday night when the visiting Kansas City Chiefs battle the Chicago Bears.
The “what ifs” will continue to sound, they can’t be stopped. And yet, the man that decided to trade up one spot to select Trubisky as the first quarterback in the 2017 NFL Draft, general manager Ryan Pace isn’t focused on Trubisky vs. Mahomes but rather the development of the offense moving forward.
“You understand the narrative—players at the same position in the same draft class are always compared at any position,” Pace said, via NBC Sports Chicago. “But our focus is on our situation and continued growth from our quarterback and really the whole offense.”
When discussing the issues that plagued the 2019 Bears, the offensive deficiencies rank at the top of the list. Chicago ranks 28th in yards per game this year (298.4), which isn’t acceptable for a unit that was believed to make strides in its second season in Matt Nagy’s offense.
But the offense has come alive over the last few weeks, with impressive performances in wins over the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys prior to last week’s struggles against the Green Bay Packers.
“We talked about finding an offensive identity and I think in a lot of ways we’ve done that,” Pace said. “You felt it the previous two weeks, but we know we can play better than how we performed in Green Bay. That’s a game where we moved the ball, but we just didn’t finish drives. We’ve got to be better in that area.”
Obviously, the responsibility of the offenses falls on the quarterback, and Trubisky hasn’t had the season many were expecting from him. His early-season struggles were signs of regression rather than growth, which has raised questions about his future in Chicago. But over the last six games, Trubisky has strung together positive performances, including two impressive outings against the Lions and Cowboys.
“You look at just his knowledge and comfort level in the offense in general,” Pace said. “He’s finishing Year 2 in this offensive scheme and every single rep is important for his growth. I think as he gains more reps you just feel his ability to play faster and more decisive and we’ve seen that jump out in the second part of the season. I just think that comes with that experience.”
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