Chicago Bears need an identity for Mitch Trubisky to thrive
Before the Chicago Bears can have quarterback Mitch Trubisky thrive, the team needs to find its identity on offense.
Ask any Chicago Bears fan their opinion on quarterback Mitchell Trubisky and you’ll get a variety of responses. Give him a little time and he’ll eventually come through. Get an offensive line to block for him. Forget about him, he’s a bust. All he needs is a veteran to push him so we could see his best.
Before anyone could find something to “fix” Trubisky, the offense first needs to find an identity, however.
Throughout the history of the franchise, the Bears were always known as a run-first offense. The team has the distinction of having some of the best running backs play for them. Gayle Sayers and Walter Payton are among the best the NFL has ever seen. Even a running back not as great as those two, Matt Forte was among the best all-around backs in the league when he was in his prime.
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No matter who the head coach was, the Bears relied heavily on the running game. Sure, there was that first season under much-beloved head coach Marc Trestman (enter sarcastic face here) in 2013 when the offense ranked second only to the historic Peyton Manning-led Denver Broncos offense.
The fans are used to seeing a strong running game when they see the Chicago Bears play. That is why there was so much frustration when they saw the offense struggle in the running game last season. The running game ranked 20th in rushing attempts, 27 in rushing yards, 28th in rushing touchdowns and 29th in average yards per rush.
It’s difficult seeing the offense transition to a run-first offense to a modern, pass-first unit. There will be growing pains, such as getting away from Jordan Howard‘s success in his first two seasons.
If head coach Matt Nagy wants to transition to the big-play, passing offense, then he needs to go all-in right away. He needs to put in all the pieces to make the change. Tweak the offensive line and use the receivers to make the change. He has the running back who is a fit in the system so use him.
Once Nagy settles in on what his offense should look like, he then has to see if Trubisky is a fit. At his press conference before the NFL Combine, he seemed like he was ready to do whatever it takes to win. He’s ready to make changes to his scheme to find out what he has in Trubisky, per ESPN:
"“Now that I’ve had two years with this personnel and kind of building it and knowing who we are, it’s so much easier to watch scheme evaluations and know what this guy does well, his weaknesses and his strengths, and so now, with that, it’s not fair to force them into something that I do… Whatever we need to do, you want to do that.”"
While the Bears have some holes to fill through free agency and the draft, none of it matters if Trubisky doesn’t improve. Acquire the talent around him and work during camps and preseason to bring out his best. That means using David Montgomery better than he did in 2019.
In 2019, Montgomery had two games in which he had fewer than 10 rushing attempts. The Bears lost both games. He had four games in which he rushed 20 or more times. The Bears were 3-1 (and the only loss was against the Los Angeles Chargers in a game that the kicker missed a chip shot field goal for the win).
Critics say that Trubisky should have used his legs as he did in 2018. He rushed for 421 yards in 2018 but just 193 in 2019. The problem is that when he runs he opens himself up for injuries. He’s missed three games in the past two seasons with injuries. Losing a game has more of an impact than if any other player misses a game.
Just because Trubisky doesn’t run doesn’t mean he can’t move. He has trouble throwing in the pocket so have him move the pocket. That helps in a number of ways. Trubisky the field better (perhaps because he isn’t thinking as much, just relying on his instincts) so he can get a throw off. Additionally, rolling out gives him more time to throw. The offensive line had some trouble in 2019 and even with a better line, if the quarterback can move around it’ll help any line.
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As Nagy said, he’s had two seasons to see what he has in the Chicago Bears. He now needs to adjust his scheme to the players he has. That was one of the criticisms fans had of him. They felt he didn’t adjust his offense and his plays. Perhaps that’s exactly what he’ll do in 2020.