Matt Nagy: Pulling Mitch Trubisky Had “Zero To Do With His Play”

While meeting with the media at Halas Hall on Monday, Chicago Bears Head Coach Matt Nagy issued some clarity regarding quarterback Mitch Trubisky, his injury, and the decision take him out of the game.

Here it is, in its most simple form:

 

Nagy informed reporters about specifics regarding Trubisky’s injury (a “right hip pointer”), when it occurred (Nagy says on a sack at the end of the second quarter), and why the quarterback was ultimately pulled late in the fourth quarter (“completely based off his injury”). But still … we are nowhere near closing the loop on this story. Because while Nagy said the benching had “zero to do” with Trubisky’s play and was all about the injury, he also laid out how the injury negatively impacted his play.

Here is the timeline Nagy laid out regarding the injury:

  • The right hip pointer injury occurred when taking a sack at the end of the second quarter
  • Rather than go into the blue medical tent on the sideline, the Bears took a look at Trubisky in the locker room. From there, it was determined he was well enough to play in the second half.
  • Over time, Nagy explained, the injury worsened for Trubisky.
  • Nagy said the hip stiffened and became tighter, complicating things for Trubisky.
  • Things worsened as the game played on, with Nagy noticing it becoming problematic when he noticed a lack of follow through on Trubisky’s throws (due to his inability to step into them because of his ailing hip)
  • When Trubisky hit a point where the injury was impacting his play to the point of no return, he summoned Chase Daniel to get warmed up (and the rest its history).
  • Throughout all this, I couldn’t help but think about how Nagy — knowing his quarterback suffered a hip injury that was serious enough to get checked out at halftime — ran an option pitch play on 3rd-and-1 to the short side of the field with a player who had a bum hip and was only a few weeks removed from suffering a serious shoulder injury. I’m at a loss.

    Anyway, Nagy did say that Trubisky wanted to continue playing through the injury. And why not? Trubisky had already made it this far, but Nagy ultimately pulled the plug because had seen the injury worsen to the point where there was no point in sending a player whose injury is making his play worse.

    In the end, Nagy reiterated that Trubisky will remain the team’s starting quarterback, so long as he remains healthy. Thus ending this week’s quarterback controversy (for now).

    You can check out Nagy’s press conference in its entirety in the video embedded below:

    written by

    Luis C. Medina, who you can find on Twitter at lcm1986, has been covering the Chicago Bears at Bleacher Nation since 2017. Since then, he has written about 3 head coaches, 5 play-callers, and 11 starting quarterbacks. Previously, Luis wrote about the Cubs and MLB at BN (2015-16) and worked in the Chicago Tribune sports department (2011-16). He also co-hosted a Cubs postgame show, Outside the Ivy, in 2019.

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