NEWSLETTER
As anticipation builds for Mitch Trubisky’s debut on Monday Night Football, we’ve started to allow ourselves to dream about how the Chicago Bears will look moving forward and with Mike Glennon in the rear-view mirror.
You don’t have to squint to see the possibility of an expanded playbook that takes advantage of Trubisky’s mobility and teaming it with Jordan Howard’s power running, as well as Tarik Cohen’s outside bursts. It also won’t take much of an imagination to visualize Trubisky taking some risks downfield, attempting to squeeze some passes through tight windows unlike his predecessor.
However, Adam Rank sees BIGGER and BETTER things from Trubisky, which could jump start a surprising turnaround for the Bears.
Rank shares a rather unpopular opinion, in which he believes the Bears will start winning immediately – yes, immediately – with Trubisky under center. But Rank doesn’t stop there, he goes further in adding Chicago could realistically be a .500 team by the time the team’s Week 9 bye rolls around.
Perhaps Rank is onto something:
No one said getting to .500 would be easy, and it won’t be even if everything breaks for the Bears. We’re still looking at a team with a rookie quarterback who has yet to take a regular season snap, an underwhelming group of receivers, an offensive line that is in tact for the first time since November 2016, and a defense currently battling the injury bug at all three levels.
HOWEVER, it’s not totally crazy to believe a rookie can pull off what seems to be an impossible feat.
After all, Loggains saw it first hand when he was on the Tennessee Titans coaching staff back when Vince Young took over for Kerry Collins after three weeks. After an 0-3 start from the veteran Collins, Young went 8-5 as a starter to wrap up an 8-8 season. Young earned a Pro Bowl invitation, then led the team to back-to-back playoff appearances in his second and third seasons with the team.
Just because it’s possible doesn’t mean it’s probable, but I won’t stop dreaming of big things from a quarterback. Optimism is at an all-time high. Soak it in and let’s see if the Bears rookie has what it takes to change the course of the 2017 Bears.
