NEWSLETTER
Editor’s note: The original projections from ESPN’s Mike Clay caught a snag when a reader noticed Mitch Trubisky’s scrambling stats were missing. Clay has since explained what happened and re-shared his projections, which are still pretty nice. The updated post is as follows:
According to one NFL analyst’s forecast, Mitch Trubisky is in store for a record-breaking 2018 season.
Mike Clay does fantasy football analysis and projections for ESPN and he has started to share his early batch of projections for the 2018 season. You can check out the full projections for the Bears here, and you’ll want to do just that because there are some real eye-opening numbers up-and-down the depth chart (we’ll continue to explore them later this week).
In the meantime, nothing stands out like the projection Clay puts on second-year quarterback Mitch Trubisky:
If Trubisky reaches this lofty projection for passing yards in 2018, he would enter some rarified air with regards to franchise history.
Indeed, if the projections hold true for Trubisky, he would become just the 11th quarterback to throw for 3,000 yards in team history. In short, a 3,954-yard season by Trubisky would surpass Erik Kramer’s 3,838-yard season in 1995 and represent the kind of second-year leap everyone hopes the former No. 2 overall pick can make (and then some) – especially with a new head coach, passer-friendly offensive scheme, and droves of new talent on the outside.
Kramer’s 1995 season is probably the gold standard for Bears quarterbacks and offensive production, which is sad on so many levels. It would be nice for Trubisky to re-write the record books in 2018 with a new assortment of weapons on the outside, who were signed to get this offense into gear and headed in the right direction.
To that end, Clay’s projection has Allen Robinson stepping in and doing exactly what’s expected of him. One year removed from a season-ending ACL injury, Clay projects Robinson to put up a 71-catch, 994-yard, seven-touchdown season in Chicago. The Bears’ passing offense shows off some depth with Cameron Meredith tacking on 63 catches, 788 yards, and four touchdowns of his own, while Trey Burton has a breakout of sorts with 52 catches, 522 receiving yards, and four touchdowns.
We’ll dive a little deeper into the rest of the numbers later, but for now, the possibility of a Trubisky second-year breakout is tantalizing and satisfying enough.
