Chicago Bears: 3 Quarterback combinations that could find success in 2021
This second combination for the Chicago Bears will be a major youth movement
2. Nick Foles, an early-round draft pick and a late-round draft pick
If the Chicago Bears are unable to retain Mitch Trubisky’s services, Nick Foles will need to be the bridge gap in 2021. We can expect to see Foles as the starter heading into Week 1 of the 2021 season in this scenario. Honestly, this scenario probably is the least likely of the three to be successful for this franchise next season. Foles has proven he cannot run this offense well enough, but maybe with an improved offensive line, his statuesque mobility won’t matter.
If the Chicago Bears cannot bring back Trubisky, then they should use that money to sign a solid offensive tackle while simultaneously cutting both Charles Leno and Bobby Massie in the process. Honestly, I would not wait until June 1st to save the extra cap space for Massie, but I would for Leno. Cutting Massie early gives the Bears the needed salary cap to target someone like Alejandro Villanueva or maybe even Russell Okung.
In this situation, the Chicago Bears must move on from Tyler Bray once again, and bring in two quarterbacks via the 2021 NFL Draft. Imagine a similar situation to what Washington did with Kirk Cousins and Robert Griffin III back in 2012. If the draft does not fall in favor of the Chicago Bears, I would be okay with them bringing in an undrafted free agent who falls out of the draft as the third option too.
Just like the first combination, the Bears must look to draft a quarterback early in 2021. This once again will mean Kyle Trask or Mac Jones becomes the front-runners. However, in this scenario, the team might need to trade up for a better prospect in the first round. I am not a big fan of this move, but I understand locking in a quarterback of the future is important and if the opportunity presents itself the team might need to pounce.
Personally, I’d be taking an offensive tackle in the first round and see who falls to the second. The hope is one of Trask or Jones is there. If not, then the team could look to Jamie Newman in the third. To be successful in 2021 though, I’d push for Trask or Jones, even if that means waiting on offensive tackle until the second round.
The Chicago Bears cannot stop there though. The team should also bring in one of Kellen Mond, Sam Ehlinger or Ian Book. These quarterbacks should be available from the fifth round and beyond. All three are more of developmental type quarterbacks, but as we know, sometimes these guys turn out to be solid quarterbacks in the NFL. Out of those three, I’d lean Sam Ehlinger.
To recap, Nick Foles would be the lead guy to start, with Kyle Trask or Mac Jones waiting in the wings, while Sam Ehlinger develops on the practice squad. Again, this is probably the least likely of the three scenarios to succeed in 2021 and could mean the team finds themselves drafting a top quarterback in 2021 too. I would be okay with that as long as the Bears prove to take swings at the quarterback position until they get it right.