Chicago Bears: Mum’s the Word Regarding No. 2 QB Spot

Heading into Sunday’s season opener, Chicago Bears’ head coach John Fox revealed the obvious, stating that Mike Glennon will be the starting quarterback. And why not, after inking a three-year deal that includes a guaranteed $16 million. However, when it came to saying who will be the No. 2 QB, Fox kept that information to himself.

Currently, the Bears’ official website shows that Mark Sanchez is listed as the team’s second-string quarterback, while rookie Mitchell Trubisky takes up the rear. Originally, Chicago had plans of starting Glennon and having Sanchez as the primary backup, while using 2017 as a redshirt year for Trubisky. But, once the second-overall pick started to look good in the preseason, some quarterback controversy began to develop.

Trubisky wowed fans during the preseason by completing 67.9 percent of his passes (36 of 53) for 364 yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions with a QB rating of 106.2. Thankfully, Glennon quieted those rumors with a solid outing in the Bears’ third exhibition contest. As for Sanchez, he barely saw the field, playing only 14 snaps and completing only three passes for 27 yards.

Should Sanchez still be Chicago’s second option at QB? In the long run, it might be a good idea. Fox and the rest of the Bears’ coaching staff probably didn’t play Sanchez too much because they already know what he brings to the table, and they didn’t want to take reps away from Trubisky so that he could get as much experience as possible. Furthermore, in the event that Glennon is injured or underperforms, it’s better to put Sanchez in against savvy veteran defenses, versus a rookie who has had limited starting experience in college.

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Granted, Trubisky looked great in the preseason, but that was virtually against second- and third-stringers. Exactly how will the North Carolina product look against a veteran defense like the Green Bay Packers and their pass rush for an entire game at this stage of his career? Also, it’s probably not a good idea to throw Trubisky into the fire too soon, considering who the Bears have at receiver. Chicago is already without Alshon Jeffery (who’s with the Philadelphia Eagles), and their top pass catcher from last season, Cameron Meredith (torn ACL). And now the offense has an unproven Kevin White as their primary target in the passing game. Trubisky should be better prepared with a year of tutelage and a healthy receiving corps in 2018.

Even though Fox is keeping his lips sealed regarding who will be the backup to Glennon, we can probably make that assumption on our own.