Getty QB Mitchell Trubisky
With free agency set to officially begin March 17, the Chicago Bears are going to be having several new faces coming to visit Halas Hall. They’ll also be saying goodbye to some significant players, with quarterback Mitch Trubisky likely at the top of that list.
While the team has yet to make an official announcement about Trubisky or his return, ESPN reported Sunday that Chicago was very likely moving on — and they also suggested a logical landing spot for the former second overall pick.
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Trubisky Could Be Reunited With a Familiar Face
Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano of ESPN said this about Trubisky’s future in Chicago, while also suggesting an interesting new team for the young signal-caller: “The plan is to move on from Mitchell Trubisky — we’re told the door is open slightly but a source said the ship has sailed for both parties. The source sounded happy for Trubisky to get out of Chicago after all the heat he took. Now, Trubisky could apply his own heat — perhaps in Denver as competition for Drew Lock.”
The Broncos are coached, of course, by Vic Fangio, who was with the Bears for the 2015-18 seasons as their defensive coordinator. Fangio spent two of those seasons practicing with and against Trubisky, so a potential reunion would not be out of the question, particularly considering the current quarterback situation in the Mile High City.
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Could Trubisky Apply Some Heat to Drew Lock?
Taken by the Broncos in the second round (42nd overall) out of Missouri in 2019, Lock has struggled to get acclimated to the NFL so far in his young career. In 18 career starts, he has an 8-10 record, and he has completed 59.1 percent of his passes for 3,953 yards, 23 touchdowns and 18 interceptions in that span. He also 232 yards on the ground and three rushing touchdowns.
Trubisky has a similar skill set to Lock, but he has performed better throughout his four years in the league. The 26-year-old quarterback started 12 games his rookie season, going 4-8 on a bad team. Trubisky finished his rookie campaign completing 59.4 percent of his passes for 2,193 yards, seven touchdowns and seven interceptions.
He had a bit of a breakout his sophomore season in 2018, when he finished with a 66.6 completion percentage, 24 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while also netting 421 rushing yards and three scores on the ground. Through his first four years, Trubisky has a rating of 87.2 (Lock’s is 79.1 so far), and while both he and Lock specialize in short passes that seem to go nowhere (Trubisky averages 6.7 yards per pass; Lock 6.6), the current Bears quarterback has been better using his legs to get out of trouble than Lock has.
A competition between them could be an affordable option for the Broncos, who would then have two young, mobile quarterbacks on the roster.
The Move Would Make Tons of Sense
ESPN isn’t the only major media outlet linking Trubisky to the Broncos. The Denver Post thinks Trubisky would be “a low-risk/potentially high-reward acquisition for new general manager George Paton,” while giving “offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur the option of having a Drew Lock-Trubisky camp competition.”
Trubisky is clearly more experienced than Lock, and it will be interesting to see what he does outside of Chicago if given the opportunity to compete for a starting job — and right now, Denver is looking like a logical potential landing spot.
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