Chicago Bears: Starting Mike Glennon in 2017 creates win-win
The Chicago Bears will split reps in the offseason between quarterbacks, but Mike Glennon is reportedly set as the starter, which sets the team up nicely.
No matter what you think of the Chicago Bears’ decision to trade up from the third pick to No. 2 overall for Mitchell Trubisky in the 2017 NFL Draft, the results were undeniably apparent. After also signing Mike Glennon to a three-year deal in free agency, there would be constant speculation about a quarterback battle. Do the Bears start a rookie who needs work if Glennon struggles? Or do they ride Glennon and see what he develops into.
There were reports coming into the weekend that both Glennon and Trubisky would split first-team reps at points this offseason. That makes sense as the team wants to get both players reps. However, those reps apparently won’t influence who the starter will be for the 2017 season.
On Saturday, NFL Network insider Ian Rapaport reported the Glennon is “definitely the starter” for the Bears as of right now. Obviously things could change, but the Bears would be wise to continue with that plan.
Starting Glennon in 2017 (and possibly even in 2018, depending on how things play out) is the exact thing that this team needs to do. Not only does it save a little face for the organization in terms of the promises they made to Glennon, but it also puts them in the best situation moving forward.
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Trubisky may well be the best quarterback in the class, and the Bears obviously believe so. However, this draft class is noted at the position by players who require development. The North Carolina product is not exempt from that description. With just one year as the starters for the Tar Heels, Trubisky still needs to hone his mechanics and simply garner more experience as a starting quarterback. Basically, he needs those first-team practice reps.
What he doesn’t need, however, is to start right away. He’s not ready and, frankly, the Bears roster isn’t ready. This is an offense severely lacking in terms of skill position players outside of Jordan Howard. Everyone else is either unproven, can’t stay healthy or has issues with both. That’s not the situation you want to put a rookie in need of experience in at the NFL level.
Admittedly, that means the situation for Glennon isn’t great either. However, the former Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback has some NFL seasoning on him. He started for the Bucs for two seasons and has been getting quality practice reps since Jameis Winston’s arrival. Thus, his learning curve is different than Trubisky’s.
Beyond just that, though, starting Glennon ultimately sets up the Bears in the best manner in terms of future assets. If Glennon were to go out and be a superstar, Trubisky as a No. 2 overall pick would have trade value to quarterback-needy teams. Or if he goes out and looks quality, but the team remains committed to Trubisky, they still have a trade asset in the form of Glennon. In scientific terms, that’s called a win-win.
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Though there is plenty of team-building to be done for the Bears moving forward, they are undoubtedly set up nicely at quarterback. Sure, they had to give up draft capital to be in this position, but they now have options in numerous capacities. That’s not a bad spot to be in, and could help expedite their rebuild moving forward.