By Jordan Long
Quarterback Mitch Trubisky is a free agent. The Chicago Bears could re-sign him to a new contract. If they don’t, the Bears will stick with Nick Foles as their starter. Two teams could end up signing Trubisky, the New England Patriots or the Denver Broncos.
Trubisky will be entering his 5th season in the NFL. Trubisky has only been with the Chicago Bears who drafted him 2nd overall in the 2017 NFL Draft. He is 29-21 as a starter, passing for 10,609 yards and 64 touchdowns. He has been able to find his open receiver but there are times he forces the football downfield. Those can be tipped or intercepted, tossing 37 in his career.
Last season for the Bears, Trubisky went 6-3 as the starter. He threw for 2,055 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 8 interceptions. He helped them advance to the Wild Card Round where they were beaten by the New Orleans Saints 21-9. In the playoff loss to New Orleans Trubisky was 19 of 29 passing for 199 yards and 1 touchdown. The Bears would like to have him back.
Trubisky is in a position to be the starter once again. He needs to battle Foles to earn the spot. Trubisky knows the system and that could help him edge out Foles for the gig.
The Broncos don’t make a whole lot of sense. They are looking for a quarterback to push Drew Lock to earn the starting quarterback position. Trubisky is not the veteran they want. He turns the ball over far too many times. Lock and Trubisky are the same type of player. They have strong arms to find the receivers, but they force the ball into coverage which are picked off. They both will use their legs to gain yards when they can’t find a receiver. Trubisky has played more seasons and wants to be a starter in this league. It probably won’t happen in Denver.
The Patriots make the most sense as a landing spot for Trubisky. New England needs a starting quarterback. On the roster right now, the Patriots have Jarrett Stidham and Jacob Dolegala. Stidham hasn’t started a game in his 2 years in the NFL but saw action in 8 games. In those appearances, Stidham totaled 270 yards passing with 2 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. He is still a work in progress. Stidham may be the starter in New England for years to come but he hasn’t shown that yet. Dolegala is entering his second season and has yet to play a meaningful game for New England.
Trubisky would most likely be the starter for New England. He might be able to help the Patriots improve on their 7-9 record. Trubisky needs to learn the offense, but he has the arm to gain yards for New England to win games. It could be a 2 game win difference from last year which might be good enough to make the playoffs. The Bears may still keep Trubisky, but they will let him test free agency. The free agent market will determine his value. If he feels Denver or New England is the best landing spot for him to continue his career, Trubisky will sign a deal there. Otherwise, Chicago is where he will stay.
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