We can grovel about Mitchell Trubisky’s production, slice up what his recent trends mean in the grand scheme of things, and dream about the long-term outlook at quarterback some other time.
But for the moment, I’d like to take a gander at something Trubisky said during his press availability and was shared by Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune:
#Bears QB Mitch Trubisky on the mindset as the team prepares for the #Saints on Sunday. pic.twitter.com/iUQBC39Z0g
— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) January 6, 2021
Say what you want about Trubisky in any other arena. And I read the comments, so I know you will. But I’ll say this in his defense, at least he has his mind in the right place ahead of Super Wild Card Weekend. And I’m not just talking about about the rah-rah chip-on-your-shoulder stuff.
This is what captured my eye more than anything:
“We gotta be locked into the small details of our gameplay and our job descriptions and just play hard and play with a lot of passion and if we do that, I think we’ll give ourselves a good chance. But we gotta come in playing smart and play disciplined football.”
When the Bears were at their worst, they played selfish and undisciplined football. In their worst moments, the Bears didn’t play detail-oriented football. And there were times during their worst stretches when they came out flat and never recovered. I don’t know if it was because they were uptight or not playing loose. But we know what these Bears look like when they’re bad and uncompetitive. So does Trubisky. Hence, the importance of driving home the value of getting all those little things right before stepping onto the Superdome’s playing surface.
None of this is to say that the Bears will win if they hit on all those things. But it gives them a fighting chance.