Chicago Bears: Why Mitchell Trubisky has been doomed from the start

The Chicago Bears traded up from the number three pick to the number two spot in the 2017 NFL Draft to take Mitchell Trubisky. He has been doomed since that moment. Not because of the trade, but because he was now a Chicago Bear.

I have been a Chicago Bears fan for nearly as long as I have been a football fan. In fact, I have been a diehard fan of this team for exactly half of my lifetime. As I get ready to turn 36 years old in November, I look back at the last 18 years and how this team has been viewed. If you are one who takes offense to being called out as a fan, I suggest not continuing reading this article.

I am going to be real for a minute and this message is directed to everyone, including myself, who is a Chicago Bears fan. Now that I have your attention, I am going to cut out a portion of the audience. This portion should still listen because as I said, this message is for every Bears fan, but not every Bears fan falls into this category.

Alright, here it is. For the most part, Chicago Bears fans are awful. I know, I know. Boo this man. Why are we reading this? Where is my pitchfork? I get it. I am calling you out. Here’s the thing, we should be called out. We have doomed Mitchell Trubisky (and those before him) from the start. We as Bears fans like to live in this past bubble that surrounds the pre-Super Bowl era and the 1985 team.

Sure, we get behind certain players and cheer them on, but there is one position in particular that never seems to get love and support. I have to wonder if we as Chicago Bears fans have truly cursed this team from ever having a Tom Brady or Peyton Manning type quarterback. Too often I hear about how this team’s identity should always be a great defense and a strong running game.

Having those two things would be great. However, the NFL has evolved and passing games are more important than ever. This current Chicago Bears team does have a great defense. Unfortunately, the running game has not been great under Matt Nagy. That has something to do with his system and schemes though (a tale for another day). The passing game has not been any better.

Now, do you know what else I hear too often? “This Trubinsky guy is garbage, get him out of there.” Yes, I spelled his name wrong on purpose. That too is a Chicago Bears fan thing to do. But guess what, this saying does not stop there. As I sit in the stands, year after year. “Get Rex Grossman out of there, he is complete trash.” “Jay Cutler is the worst, give Caleb Hanie a shot, he looks to be the real deal.” These same people also try to tell me Mike Ditka was a great coach.

Are you noticing a pattern yet? For every starting quarterback, many Chicago Bears fans believe his backup is the better option. My first memory of this (and although probably was the only time it was correct) was back when people were debating very loudly about Mike Tomczak and Jim Harbaugh. Maybe a logical Bears fan who is older than me can comment about prior years.

Now, what about Mitchell Trubisky? Is it not his job to just be good? If he had talent, the fan’s perspective of him should not matter. I understand this argument and there is some validity to it, but hear me out for a minute.

As soon as Ryan Pace made the trade to move up from the number three overall pick to number two in the 2017 NFL Draft, fans were stunned. Many were even more stunned that the pick was for Trubisky and not for Deshaun Watson. I too was stunned as Watson was the guy I wanted.

Ryan Pace saw something in Trubisky though that reminded him of Drew Brees. Not the current, Hall of Fame version, but the one who was struggling for the Chargers. Pace saw Trubisky’s potential and clearly loved his work ethic and leadership. Even if Pace ends up being wrong, I love his conviction for going after the guy he wanted to have here in Chicago.

The booing started immediately though. I was not happy at first either, but as a fan, I had to support the guy who was going to be leading my favorite team. What would booing him before he even took a snap do? I remember when Mitchell Trubisky went to a Bulls game after being drafted and when put on camera and tackle hugged by Benny, fans a the stadium booed him.

He had still yet to play a single down in the NFL. What do you think that does to a person’s psyche? “But Rob, these guys are professionals, they should be able to handle it or not play.” My response to you is, are you not a professional at your job? How would you like it if I sat behind you and booed at every little mistake you made? Even worse, what if I booed you before you even started doing your job after being hired?

A story broke recently about a child at a Blackhawks game who was asked on camera what he was going to be for Halloween. The child responded he was going as Mitchell Trubisky. The United Center booed. First, do you think this child understood? No. Second, again, what good does booing in that situation do for anyone? Nothing.

If you missed it, here is Mitchell Trubisky’s latest press conference.

He is clearly tired of having to answer questions from the media. The same media who fuels the Chicago Bears fans’ meatballism. Yes, I made that word up, but it fits. Has Trubisky been good this year? No. Has the play-calling been a problem though too? Yes. Has the running game been non-existent and hurting the pass? Absolutely.

Chase Daniel did not play any better overall when Trubisky was hurt. Outside of maybe Aaron Rodgers, not many quarterbacks would be playing well either with how this current offense is executing. Instead of putting our players down, our job as fans is to fire them back up. Especially during the game itself. Especially a home game.

Next time you think you should boo the quarterback, coach or team, put your Bear Goggles On and try to lift them up instead. Cheering your team on when winning is easy. Cheering them on while struggling is harder. And although maybe awful too often, Chicago Bears fans are easily the most passionate.