Jay Cutler’s satin Bears jacket shone in the daylight of Soldier Field.
The former Bears quarterback stood on the sideline before Thursday’s season opener, soaking in the first time he’d ever set foot on the field as anything but a player. He rubbed Kyle Long’s head and the Bears guard gave him a bear hug.
The specter of the Bears’ former quarterback lingered long past kickoff, when Mitch Trubisky threw an end-zone interception and survived two more dropped picks by the rival Packers. He went 26-for-45 for 228 yards, one interception and a 62.1 passer rating.
Then Packers cornerback Tramon Williams offered his evaluation of Trubisky’s dud.
“We knew if we could make Mitch play quarterback, that we’d have a chance,” he said.
He claimed a day later it wasn’t a shot at Trubisky.
Except for former tight end Martellus Bennett — who once compared Cutler to Jesus Christ, saying He too was an “excellent guy who did a lot of awesome stuff” — players rarely coin their own sayings in the postgame locker room. Williams, then, was likely repeating what he heard from the Packers’ defensive coaches all week.
Which means that, at the start of only his third season, Trubisky has a reputation.
It sounded exactly like what other teams used to say about Cutler. In the Bears’ 23-10 loss to the Packers on Sept. 13, 2012, Cutler threw four interceptions and was sacked seven times.
“Same old Jay,” Packers safety Charles Woodson said after the game. “We don’t need luck. We just need to be in position. Jay will throw us the ball.”
By then, Cutler was in his seventh season. His habits were entrenched. Trubisky’s are not. He still has time to change the narrative. Beating former Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, whose specialty is disguising zone coverage to fool young quarterbacks just like Trubisky, would be a good start.
By then, though pressure will have mounted — even without Trubisky playing a game. The Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, the reigning NFL MVP, plays Sunday. The Texans’ Deshaun Watson, who finally has a competent left tackle, plays on “Monday Night Football” against the Saints.
The Rams’ Jared Goff and the Eagles’ Carson Wentz will play for the first time since receiving the same contract extension that Trubisky will hope for next offseason.
Not every game Trubisky plays is a referendum of Trubisky’s future, or the draft-day trade that saw general manager Ryan Pace move up to take him ahead of Mahomes and Watson. But his performance was so unnerving Thursday night — Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander told Sports Illustrated that “if [Trubisky’s] first read isn’t there, then he will turn and run” — that it warrants concern.
“The head coach and the quarterback, it’s our job to understand that when you win, you usually get all the credit,” coach Matt Nagy said. “When you lose you get that, too. That’s O.K. It’s fine.
“We’ll work, we’ll talk together, we’ll figure out the ‘why’ part. I have zero concern. It’s just that I just know the expectations of knowing that we can be better than what we showed.”
They can’t beat the Broncos without a bounce-back game from Trubisky, who made a few impressive throws Thursday.
“We’re trying to get that point to where those conviction throws happen at all the time,” Nagy said. “It’s nice when you have green grass in front of you in that pocket to throw. And he didn’t always have that. And that’s a part of playing ball, though, of playing quarterback in this league.”
He has 10 days to find that confidence, and to rewrite the all-too-early version of the season narrative.
“That’s our job,” Nagy said. “To make sure that he stays up.”
