Jake Fromm: Chicago Bears
Speaking of polarizing prospects…
The Georgia Bulldog did not have an ideal time out in Indianapolis, at least when it comes to what we in the media can see and observe. His throwing session highlighted one of the concerns evaluators have with him – a lack of upper-level arm talent – and his workout did not illustrate that Fromm can be the most athletic of quarterbacks when staring down the Von Millers of the world.
But there is a great phrase among NFL scouts and evaluators, one taught to me by Dan Hatman, the Director of the Scouting Academy. Hatman, who won a Super Bowl ring with the New York Giants as a scout, now looks to teach the next generation of NFL scouts how to evaluate players. One of the first lessons Hatman instills in his students is one passed on to him by Dave Gettleman: “Don’t tell me what [the player] can’t do. Tell me what he can do.”
Here is what Fromm can do as a quarterback. He can take charge of an offense at the line of scrimmage, adjust protections and get the offense into good looks and out of bad ones. He can put the football where it needs to be in the short- and intermediate-areas of the field, and he can make the right decisions with the football quickly and get it out of his hands to his targets, taking full advantage of the offensive designs called by his offensive coordinator.
Now does that seem to you like something that is critically missing from the Chicago Bears’ offense?
As someone who spent the past two seasons chronicling the trials and tribulations of Mitchell Trubisky for Pro Football Weekly, I can tell you with absolute certainty that it is. The main thing holding the Bears’ offense back last season was a failure of Trubisky to grow beyond what he was in college: An athletic quarterback who can make the right read and decision when everything is put on a plate for him pre-snap, but someone who struggles when the pre-snap picture changes.
As a result of this, Matt Nagy’s offense has become stagnant, because let’s face it, you can only run mirrored curl/flat so many times before the defense starts to figure out what you are doing.
Fromm could step in and give the Bears’ offense what it needs at the position. Chicago fans, given my Twitter mentions, seem to be more excited about Anthony Gordon and his upside (we will get to him in a moment) but from Fromm’s perspective, Chicago is an ideal landing spot.