Mark Potash at the Chicago Sun-Times quotes Matt Nagy
on why he thinks quarterback Mitch Trubisky may be improved as he takes back the starting job for at least one more week against the Packers:
Don’t be surprised if Trubisky does the same some day.
But probably not here. Trubisky returns with a worse supporting cast then when he was benched. And while you can’t blame Nagy for his positivity, his support of Trubisky just rings hollow at this stage:“I was really impressed with his huddle mechanics.”
“I like the way that he’s practiced this week.”
“I’m very impressed with how he’s grown week to week … I’ve seen a change in him and for the good. It’s a good feeling. It comforts you. It’s exciting, because you know how good of a kid he is.”
That last sentiment didn’t pass the smell test.
None of it passes the smell test.
Trubisky says that he was “blind-sided” when Nick Foles took the job from him in week 3. He says that it has served as motivation and that he has focused more on improving.
But didn’t we hear the same thing all off-season when Trubisky was supposedly upset after they signed Foles and he was competing for his job? If Trubisky was truly capable of focusing more and improving his performance, wouldn’t it have become apparent in training camp? Or in the first three games of the year when he looked exactly like he did in 15 games last year?
It’s true that sometimes sitting on the bench clears your head as you watch the other guy play and you think about the things that you could have done better. But after so much time of being the same guy, I’m not holding my breath waiting such a thing is going to happen here.
Trubisky has the look of a guy who needs a fresh start in another town and with a better offensive coaching staff in a low pressure environment where he can sit and get better as a back up for a season or two. If you ask me, he looks like a great project for Sean Payton and the New Orleans Saints.
In any case, I’m not buying any of it.
If the Bears offense is going to improve, it will be because the running game improved. And that will help Trubisky far more than any professions of renewed motivation or more “good feelings” from his head coach.