Tag: mitchell trubisky

Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky knows offense still has long way to go

Chicago’s win over the Lions was a step in the right direction, but QB Mitchell Trubisky knows that the offense still has a long way to go.

Last Sunday’s game against the Lions might’ve been exactly what Bears third-year quarterback Mitchell Trubisky needed to get on track after a season spent spiraling off it.

Trubisky was able to overcome a slow start against the Lions, something he wasn’t able to do in previous games against the Packers, Saints, Chargers and Eagles. He attributed that to staying calm and communicating on the sideline, where they were able to correct mistakes and go out and make plays.

While the Bears’ Week 10 win over the Lions was certainly a step in the right direction, Trubisky knows that the offense still has a long way to go before they’re where they want to be.

“We’re not exactly where we want to be yet, but a win definitely gives you confidence moving forward because at the end of the day, no matter what you did you came away with the result you wanted and that’s a win,” Trubisky said, via ChicagoBears.com. “We’ve still got to find ways to pull together, continue to work harder and get better and try to go 1-0 this week. That’s the focus and we’ve just got to continue to stick to that.”

It won’t be easy against a dominant Rams defense that held the Bears to just 15 points last season in Chicago — a game where Trubisky tossed three interceptions coming off a shoulder injury.

As Chicago prepares for a rematch against the Rams, Trubisky says the offense is focused on converting redzone opportunities into touchdowns, something they only managed to do once against the Rams in 2018.

But Trubisky and co. will have to do it against a defense led by defensive tackle Aaron Donald and cornerback Jalen Ramsey.

“They’ve got obviously really talented players in Donald and they do a lot of stuff up front with twists and getting pressure,” Trubisky said. “Last year they kind of zoned us out and tried to keep everything in front and kind of take away our big plays, so for us it’s just going to be being good on first and second down, trying to establish drives, stay on the field, and we’ve got to find ways to score points.”

“They did a good job of keeping us out of the end zone and made us settle for some field goals last year, so we’d like to find ways to punch it in and when we get into the red zone, finish drives. That’s going to be the focus. But we know we’re going against a talented defense and they’ve played a lot of tough games this year, as have we, so we’ve just got to find ways to make it happen and on game day execute better than they do.”

 

What does Matt Nagy have to say about Bears’ potential interest in Colin Kaepernick?

When discussing Colin Kaepernick’s potential landing spots, Chicago is a natural go-to considering their quarterback concerns.

Colin Kaepernick’s impending private workout has been a hot button of conversation, as all 32 NFL teams were sent invites for a Saturday workout in Atlanta.

Naturally, the Bears are a team being thrown around when discussing Kaepernick, as Chicago is looking to solidify the quarterback position.

When Matt Nagy was asked about whether the Bears would send someone to Atlanta to watch Kaepernick, he remained mum on any potential interest from the Bears.

“I honestly have no idea right now,” Nagy said, via NBC Sports Chicago. “I’m just kind of focused in on where we’re at. I’ll leave that up to Ryan [Pace] and those guys. I know they’ll have a handle on that.”

Kaepernick hasn’t played in the NFL for three years, but there’s no denying how dynamic he was as a player. Following the controversy that followed him over taking a knee during the national anthem, many are looking to see how things ultimately pan out for him, Nagy included.

“It’ll be interesting,” Nagy said. “He’s been out of the game a little bit but when he was doing well and playing he definitely was a weapon. I’ll be curious to see how he does. I have no idea. Again, for me, I wish him the best and all that and you always root good for people but from where I’m at right now personally we’re so focused in on the Rams.”

The Bears should do their due diligence at the most important — and in Chicago’s case, most frustrating — position by sending a scout to watch Kaepernick.

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Which quarterback are Bears targeting in latest 2020 NFL mock draft?

The Bears will be in the market for a quarterback this offseason, and they’ll likely turn to the 2020 NFL Draft for their next QB.

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The Chicago Bears will be looking to improve the quarterback position in 2020, and the NFL Draft would be a good place to start.

While you could argue the Bears are in win-now mode and can’t afford to start over with a young quarterback, free agency isn’t necessarily a cost-effective, production-guaranteed investment.

The Bears will likely turn to the 2020 NFL Draft for their next quarterback, which features a strong class rich with Day 2 talent.

In Draft Wire‘s latest three-round 2020 mock draft, they have the Bears using their first selection — No. 45 in the second round — on Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts.

While Hurts has gotten some first-round love, it’s likely that he falls to Day 2, where the Bears will be waiting with a pair of second round picks. This season, Hurts is completing 73% of his passes for 2,742 yards and 24 touchdowns to just 4 interceptions.

Hurts is also producing on the ground, where he added 125 rushes for 869 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Hurts isn’t a quarterback that the Bears would insert immediately, which makes sense for 2020, where Mitchell Trubisky will likely still be on the roster potentially with a free agent addition.

The Bears have another pick in the second round just three picks later at No. 48 — which was acquired from the Oakland Raiders in the Khalil Mack trade — where Draft Wire has them going defense with Clemson cornerback A.J. Terrell.

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Bears have highest drop rate in NFL through Week 10

Nothing has been working for the Bears’ offense this season. So it’s no wonder why they lead the NFL in the highest drop rate.

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When you have a struggling offense, there’s little room for error. Unfortunately for the Chicago Bears, there have been plenty of errors over the first 10 weeks of the 2019 season.

And it doesn’t just fall on third-year quarterback Mitchell Trubisky, who deserves a fair share of the blame for the offense’s struggles.

When your young quarterback is struggling, you need to do everything you can to help him. Establish the run game (which has been inconsistent and suspect this season), give him a clean pocket (which hasn’t always been the case this season) and have your playmakers come down with the ball.

Given that most of these factors — including the quarterback’s play — haven’t been working, it’s no wonder the Bears boast the NFL’s 29th-ranked offense.

In fact, the Bears have the highest drop rate in the NFL at 7.36 percent. Of 299 attempts, Bears receivers have 22 drops, which also ranks highest in the league. They’re the only team that has a drop rate greater than 7 percent.

The Bears have two players that rank in the top 35 in the NFL in drops: running back Tarik Cohen (6) and receiver Allen Robinson (3).

This certainly doesn’t let Trubisky off the hook, who needs to do a better job of giving his receivers a chance to catch the ball, for the offense’s struggles.

But Trubisky would certainly benefit from better pass protection from his offensive line, which ranks 22nd in the league with 27 sacks allowed through the first 10 weeks.

Which isn’t to say that Trubisky hasn’t had a hand in several of those sacks. You could argue that most of his five sacks last Sunday against the Detroit Lions were on him.

Simply put, the entire offense needs to do better. It’s not just one guy. It would be easier if it were.

Can Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky build off 3-TD performance?

Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky had his best performance of the season against a lowly Lions defense. Can he build on that performance?

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The Chicago Bears notched their first win in over a month with a 20-13 victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

It wasn’t a perfect win by any means, but it came when the Bears needed it most, as they advanced to 4-5 on the season and helped them cling to slim playoff hopes.

But also encouraging was oft-maligned quarterback Mitchell Trubisky’s performance, where he seemed to awaken from a season-long slumber to deliver his best game of the season against a lowly Lions defense.

Trubisky’s stats weren’t otherworldly, but that didn’t matter as he came up clutch as Chicago’s offense battled back from a rough first half. If anything, he’d like to have those five sacks back.

But Trubisky completed 16-of-23 passes for 173 yards and three touchdowns for a passer rating of 131.0.

“When you go through tough things, I think you’ve just got to remember why you play this game,” Trubisky said following Sunday’s game. “You just love to play this game, and you love the guys you play with. That’ll get you through anything, and just continue to stick together, feed off your teammates, and believe that you’re going to have a breakthrough, and whether you describe today as a breakthrough or not, we got the win.”

But the fact of the matter is that Trubisky played well against a Lions defense that ranked 31st in the NFL. It’s only the second game that Trubisky has played well, the other coming against another bad defense in the Washington Redskins, where he tossed three second-quarter touchdowns.

The real test will be these final seven games, where Trubisky will face some tough defenses, including the Los Angeles Rams, Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers.

Can Trubisky build off his strong performance against the Lions? Or will he come back down to earth quickly heading into the final stretch of the season?

We’ll see Sunday when the Bears face the Rams on Sunday Night Football.

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