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Brian Urlacher may be looking into buying the New York Mets alongside J-Lo and A-Rod, but he still takes time to talk football — and he has some thoughts and opinions about the Chicago Bears’ current quarterback competition.
Urlacher appeared on The Pat McAfee Show Wednesday to discuss the upcoming football season, with an emphasis on his former team. When McAfee asked the Hall of Fame linebacker what he thought about the team’s two quarterbacks, Mitchell Trubisky and Nick Foles, Urlacher definitely took sides, saying he was a Mitch man all the way.
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Urlacher Throws Some Subtle Shade at Nick Foles
One thing that bothered Urlacher about the team’s decision to trade for Foles was GM Ryan Pace’s assurance that Trubisky would be the team’s starter when the 2019 season was over.
“A month after the season, Pace was like: ‘Mitch is our guy. We drafted him No. 2 overall, we’re gonna ride with him,” Urlacher said. “And then, like three weeks later, they went and traded for Foles, and I was like ‘What the hell?’ I thought maybe they were just gonna have a high-priced backup. They were gonna have a guy just in case Mitchell gets hurt or doesn’t work out, [they were] gonna have a super-high-priced backup. And now, they’re saying they’re both in a battle for the job.” He then took a slight jab at Foles.
“Nick Foles has some good credentials,” Urlacher said, before throwing the subtlest bit of shade in: “he was a good backup for Philly that one year.”
Foles has never started a full season in the NFL, but he has filled in capably as a starter, and he did beat Tom Brady in the Super Bowl, but Urlacher didn’t seem too interested in talking about Foles’ credentials.
“I just don’t understand the trade for Nick Foles. I like the guy. I’ve got nothing against him. If you talk about keeping a guy at quarterback after you traded up to No. 2 — you didn’t have to, but you did — it was confusing to me. Ryan Pace is a smart guy, don’t get me wrong, and I know Foles played in Kansas City under Coach Nagy, so I get that, as well. I just think if you say you’re gonna stick with a guy, you stick with him.”
Urlacher Loves Trubisky’s Character
Urlacher, noting he played for a whopping 21 quarterbacks in his 13 seasons, said he appreciates Mitch’s character more than anything. “Not so much for what he’s done on the field — just the way he handles himself. You have a guy who walks to the mic after a game when they win, and all he talks about is the offensive line, the defense, the coaching … I respect that. When he walks to the mic after he loses, he says: ‘I have to play better. I didn’t do a good enough job.’ I respect the sh*t outta that.”
No one has ever criticized Trubisky for his work ethic, his attitude, or his leadership ability. Urlacher saying he appreciates Trubisky “not so much for what he’s done on the field” seems slightly damning in a way, because it’s what happens on the field that matters most. Still, Urlacher thinks Trubisky should be the guy in Chicago, and he said the fourth-year quarterback will have the right mindset heading into the season.
“His mindset is gonna be: ‘I’m the guy.’ After talking to him and seeing his interviews … He’s confident in himself, he believes in his ability. Two years ago, he had a great season.”
Urlacher also said he didn’t blame Trubisky for the team’s offensive woes in 2019, and he’s not ready to give up on him after “one bad season.”
You can watch Urlacher’s interview with McAfee below.
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