By Constantine Martin
Twitter: @gusmartin321
The Chicago Bears have not had a winning record since 2012. The organization's last long-term quarterback was the always disappointing and seemingly uninterested Jay Cutler. The team just fired its head coach John Fox.
To put it simply; the Bears are looking for a spark. They are looking for hope.
The organization and Bears fans everywhere are hoping that spark plug can be 2017 second overall pick quarterback Mitchell Trubisky.
Chicago traded four picks to move up and select Trubisky, out of UNC, in effort to try and find a centerpiece to build around. The team initially wanted to be patient and not play him much in his rookie season, but nonetheless Trubisky was thrust into the Bears' starting job after a few games and tasked with trying to sail and sinking ship for the remainder of the year.
Trubisky was not great in the 12 games he started, going 4-8 and throwing only seven touchdowns to match his seven interceptions. But there were some flashes of talent, particularly with his ability to escape the pocket and pick up yards on the ground, that kept his team optimistic for what the future could hold.
In year two, Trubisky is going to need to take the fabled "sophomore-leap" if he is to be the cornerstone of the Bears franchise.
Look at young star quarterbacks like Jared Goff and Carson Wentz. Both of them, especially Goff, were not great as rookies, but they each took major steps forward in year two that proved they were not only working hard in the offseason, but capable of starting at the NFL level for years to come.
Wentz threw 17 more touchdowns as a sophomore. Goff threw 23 more. Trubisky needs to look at what they were able to improve on and try to imitate their success as best as he can.
New head coach Matt Nagy hired former Oregon head coach Mark Helfrich, who helped mold Marcus Mariota into a Heisman Trophy winner, to be the team's new offensive coordinator. Like Goff, Trubisky has a new staff working with him in year two. Bears fans can only hope the improvement in production is close to as drastic as it was for the Rams' offense.
Trubisky also has some talented new weapons to throw to this upcoming season in Allen Robinson, Taylor Gabriel and tight end Trey Burton. These three, in addition to the other offensive pieces like top-10 power ranked running back Jordon Howard, should provide Trubisky with enough talent around him to produce at a high level, assuming he is capable of doing so.
I see many parallels between Goff's sophomore year and what Trubisky's could be, but I am not sold on if he can put it all together, or at least not as quickly and seamlessly as Goff did. The Bears also play in the NFC North, one of the NFL's most competitive divisions, so I do not expect him to carry Chicago to the playoffs.
What he needs to show, however, is poise, consistency and leadership. I don't care about his numbers as much because those can come in time, but as an NFL quarterback you need to show an ability to run an offense every week and have the guts to make a timely play.
Make some throws down the field, lead a game-winning drive, play a style that makes him unique, and to prove to his organization and the critics that he was deserving of going second overall.
If he plays well, then Chicago would have made a smart gamble for the future. If he plays like just another rotational backup again, then the Bears might have bet on the wrong guy.
To put it simply; the Bears are looking for a spark. They are looking for hope.
The organization and Bears fans everywhere are hoping that spark plug can be 2017 second overall pick quarterback Mitchell Trubisky.
Chicago traded four picks to move up and select Trubisky, out of UNC, in effort to try and find a centerpiece to build around. The team initially wanted to be patient and not play him much in his rookie season, but nonetheless Trubisky was thrust into the Bears' starting job after a few games and tasked with trying to sail and sinking ship for the remainder of the year.
Trubisky was not great in the 12 games he started, going 4-8 and throwing only seven touchdowns to match his seven interceptions. But there were some flashes of talent, particularly with his ability to escape the pocket and pick up yards on the ground, that kept his team optimistic for what the future could hold.
In year two, Trubisky is going to need to take the fabled "sophomore-leap" if he is to be the cornerstone of the Bears franchise.
Look at young star quarterbacks like Jared Goff and Carson Wentz. Both of them, especially Goff, were not great as rookies, but they each took major steps forward in year two that proved they were not only working hard in the offseason, but capable of starting at the NFL level for years to come.
Wentz threw 17 more touchdowns as a sophomore. Goff threw 23 more. Trubisky needs to look at what they were able to improve on and try to imitate their success as best as he can.
New head coach Matt Nagy hired former Oregon head coach Mark Helfrich, who helped mold Marcus Mariota into a Heisman Trophy winner, to be the team's new offensive coordinator. Like Goff, Trubisky has a new staff working with him in year two. Bears fans can only hope the improvement in production is close to as drastic as it was for the Rams' offense.
Trubisky also has some talented new weapons to throw to this upcoming season in Allen Robinson, Taylor Gabriel and tight end Trey Burton. These three, in addition to the other offensive pieces like top-10 power ranked running back Jordon Howard, should provide Trubisky with enough talent around him to produce at a high level, assuming he is capable of doing so.
I see many parallels between Goff's sophomore year and what Trubisky's could be, but I am not sold on if he can put it all together, or at least not as quickly and seamlessly as Goff did. The Bears also play in the NFC North, one of the NFL's most competitive divisions, so I do not expect him to carry Chicago to the playoffs.
What he needs to show, however, is poise, consistency and leadership. I don't care about his numbers as much because those can come in time, but as an NFL quarterback you need to show an ability to run an offense every week and have the guts to make a timely play.
Make some throws down the field, lead a game-winning drive, play a style that makes him unique, and to prove to his organization and the critics that he was deserving of going second overall.
If he plays well, then Chicago would have made a smart gamble for the future. If he plays like just another rotational backup again, then the Bears might have bet on the wrong guy.
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