The most anticipated position battle in the city of Chicago officially began on Friday as Bears quarterbacks Mitchell Trubisky and Nick Foles met with the media. Both players, who reported for training camp this week, are striving to win the starting job and with no preseason games and a truncated offseason program, every rep counts.
Trubisky and Foles took different approaches to their respective meetings. Here are my five takeaways from what we heard on Friday afternoon.
1. Trubisky and Foles set two different tones
When listening to Trubisky and Foles answer questions from the media, you get the sense right away where each player’s mindset is at. Trubisky repeatedly stated he feels he’s the best player for the job and knows his teammates feel the same way. He’s edgier and doesn’t seem to want to be the backup. Foles, meanwhile, talked about how he felt “at home” in head coach Matt Nagy’s offense, but also said he’s willing to accept any role that’s given him as long as his team wins and that he wants to help Trubisky.
Trubisky sounds like a man who knows all the pressure is on him. Foles sounds like someone who isn’t taking the situation too seriously. Neither approach is right or wrong as everyone has their different motivations. But it’s interesting to hear the difference in how each player speaks in this situation.
2. The coaching staff may have failed Trubisky
Arguably the biggest note coming out of the press conference was the revelation that Trubisky changed his mechanics for the first time ever this offseason.
This was an absolute bombshell of a statement. Trubisky, the second overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft who is now entering his fourth season as a pro, says he’s never changed his mechanics. When it comes to athletes, all of them have had to change their mechanics on how they throw, catch, shoot, swing, etc. at some point in their careers.
Imagine a baseball player never changing their swing. This doesn’t look great for Trubisky, but it really makes the Bears coaching staff look somewhat incompetent. Former quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone, who is now the passing coordinator, spent the last three seasons coaching Trubisky. How he never managed to work and change the quarterback’s mechanics is baffling.
The good news? Maybe something finally clicked when Trubisky spent time with quarterback trainer Jeff Christensen, a renowned teacher who has helped many star players in the past. But Ragone and the coaching staff’s inability to effectively work on Trubisky’s mechanics is worrisome. At least he’s moved to a different part of the offense.
3. Nick Foles is a team-first guy
I alluded to this point earlier, but it really comes out the more Foles speaks. He’s not interested in being “the guy” or focusing on winning the starting job. His focus is building relationships with his teammates and coaches and making plays when called upon.
“Whoever is the best person at executing this offense, that can help the Chicago Bears win games and lead this team, should be the starter,” Foles said. “Then the other guys will be there to support him. If for some reason the starter gets hurt, then the guy who is behind him will go in and he will lead the team. That’s how the best teams play, That’s how the best teams work.”
Foles went on to say he wants to help people and develop relationships. He’s seen quite a bit in his career as an eight-year veteran. He believes the key to success is open communication and collaboration. Seeing as he has a Super Bowl ring, he may be right. But again, the contrast from what Foles is saying compared to Trubisky is very interesting.
4. Trubisky still has excuses for his 2019 performance
Last season didn’t go as planned for Trubisky or the entire Bears offense. The QB regressed from his promising 2018 campaign and suffered yet another injury in the process, missing nearly two full games due to a separated shoulder. Now healthy, Trubisky looked back on last year and thought his injury played a major role in his lack of success.
In addition to the injury, Trubisky spent tons of time watching film and going through every single throw, indicating he has learned from his mistakes and claim they are fixable. The veteran also admitted he has been more detailed with reading coverages after seeing new defensive schemes.
Those excuses are valid, and it’s not meant to be a dig at the young quarterback. Trubisky is clearly still learning and that can be viewed as a positive. Perhaps it’s another indicator that a breakthrough is coming. But enough talk, let’s see it come together on the field.
5. Let’s get to the practices, shall we?
The COVID-19 pandemic altered every NFL team and their plans going into the 2020 season. Some teams have new head coaches who need to get their system installed. Others drafted highly-touted rookies who rely on game reps to catch them up to speed. For the Bears, however, they have a true quarterback competition for the first time in 12 years and they’ll have to choose a winner based on a limited number of padded practices within training camp. No preseason games, no joint practices. Just two guys going against their own defense for at least a month. So let’s get to it.
We’ve been debating Foles vs. Trubisky for what feels like a year. Who has the edge? Who should win? The time for talking has finally come to an end and these two veterans are ready to duke it out on the gridiron. It’s about time and I’m thoroughly looking forward to every limited report that comes out of Halas Hall.
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