NEWSLETTER
A quarterback-friendly set of coaches and a group of offensive weapons that are flirting with top-10 status are all signs that things are moving in the right direction for second-year QB Mitch Trubisky and the Chicago Bears.
And now that all this positive momentum has been built, it’s time to allow Trubisky to take the next step – something Kyle Long suggests is on the horizon:
Asked @Ky1eLong how @Mtrubisky10 has grown this offseason (besides the scruff): "My little boy is becoming a man. Mitch—they've taken the training wheels off of Mitch's little bike. So he going to be able to do some things creatively and get to showcase his skills."
— Madeline Kenney (@madkenney) July 12, 2018
Long has a unique perspective on the matter that isn’t limited to having been a part of John Fox’s camp last year and the one run by Matt Nagy during this offseason. Long also can dip into the memory bank and draw on his experiences in Fox’s early camps. I guess what I’m saying here is that if anyone knows what an offense on training wheels looks like it’s definitely Long.
I’m not entirely sure suggesting that the Bears’ offense was kin to a bike on training wheels is fair, though. But that’s only because, at times, it felt like it never even got out of the wrapping – especially in Trubisky’s first few starts (Michael: heh … nice. You got me.).
Remember, Trubisky threw just 48 pass attempts in his first three games and didn’t surpass 30 attempts until his fourth start. So while the Bears showed a commitment to the running game, they never allowed Trubisky to grow in a way where he could learn from his mistakes as a passer. The scheme put together by Fox and Dowell Loggains eliminated risk factors and did not allow Trubisky to come up with a risk calculus when he dropped back. Those days are over and the Bears are set to let their creativity and Trubisky’s athleticism flow.
Frankly, we might be even more excited than Trubisky to see this come to fruition. And that’s saying something because we know how excited Trubisky is about the future (and has been for quite some time).
Soon enough, the Bears will be off to Bourbonnais where they will set out to combine all these new facets into an exciting and potent offense that can put points on the board rather than run clock and hope for the best.
