Rory Sparrow
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1) Trubuisky 19-26, 354 yards 6 TDs
Even given the fact that the opposing defense was so bad that it was legitimately 'missing' Chris Conte, the explosion of Mitch Trubisky came as a complete shock to me. I thought the worst part of Trubisky's performances thus far wasn't really the lack of pocket presence, it was him being inaccurate on throws to wide-open WRs. Tampa didn't get any pressure on Trubisky, so I don't think we can really say he's improved his pocket presence, but I do think Trubisky was far more accurate in hitting the open man. He had a couple misfires early, but then he simply couldn't miss. He was amazingly consistent in his reads and throws, which was very impressive.
The 'summit game' for Bears QBs is Johnny Lujack's 1949 demolition of a tough Cardinals defense...468 yards and 6 TDs. Lujack led the NFL in passing yards and TDs in 1949, but he also played both ways and early in 1950 injured his shoulder while playing DB. He was probably the worst All-Pro QB in league history in 1950, earning 1st team AP honors despite a "Cutler-esque" 4 TD/21 INT differential.
Speaking of Cutler, he never threw for more than 4 TDs in any game during his long, undistinguished career. Perhaps even more incredibly, Cutler only had 4 games as a Bear where he threw for more than 354 yards. It almost goes without saying that Cutler never had a game with a rating as high as Trubisky's 154.3. My point is that while you can downplay Trubisky's accomplishment ("just one game", "bad defense", etc.), it's really an unprecedented game in Bears history. It deserves full credit, IMO.
What I liked best about the Tampa game is that it appeared to show the 'synergy' between Trubisky and Nagy, with the result being points on the scoreboard. Nagy's offense got pass targets into open spaces, Trubisky found the open targets with consistently accurate throws, and the Bears offense scored points. If there was one thing I disliked about the Jay Cutler Decade more than anything, it was that Cutler's offenses never scored points. Even in Cutler's relative 'good' seasons with Martz and Gase, the Bears offense was still pedestrian.
2) Bears starting LBs - Mack, Trevathan, Smith, Floyd
I guess this one is a bit dependent on nomenclature, as in some places I see Mack listed as a DE and in others I see him listed as an OLB. I still think of him as a 3-4 OLB. This starting group may be historically unprecedented...Mack, Smith and Floyd are all Top10 draft picks. I cannot recall any other LB group with 3 Top10 draft picks. That is amazing. This is kind of a backhanded compliment to Ryan Pace, but I think this shows that the NFL is designed for bad teams to eventually cycle back and become good. Teams like the Pats, Steelers, Packers, etc. haven't seen a Top10 draft pick in years, much less have 3 in one positional grouping. The positive of this is that the Bears defense is legit with elite talent...its not the smoke/mirrors job Fangio did in 2016.
Even given the fact that the opposing defense was so bad that it was legitimately 'missing' Chris Conte, the explosion of Mitch Trubisky came as a complete shock to me. I thought the worst part of Trubisky's performances thus far wasn't really the lack of pocket presence, it was him being inaccurate on throws to wide-open WRs. Tampa didn't get any pressure on Trubisky, so I don't think we can really say he's improved his pocket presence, but I do think Trubisky was far more accurate in hitting the open man. He had a couple misfires early, but then he simply couldn't miss. He was amazingly consistent in his reads and throws, which was very impressive.
The 'summit game' for Bears QBs is Johnny Lujack's 1949 demolition of a tough Cardinals defense...468 yards and 6 TDs. Lujack led the NFL in passing yards and TDs in 1949, but he also played both ways and early in 1950 injured his shoulder while playing DB. He was probably the worst All-Pro QB in league history in 1950, earning 1st team AP honors despite a "Cutler-esque" 4 TD/21 INT differential.
Speaking of Cutler, he never threw for more than 4 TDs in any game during his long, undistinguished career. Perhaps even more incredibly, Cutler only had 4 games as a Bear where he threw for more than 354 yards. It almost goes without saying that Cutler never had a game with a rating as high as Trubisky's 154.3. My point is that while you can downplay Trubisky's accomplishment ("just one game", "bad defense", etc.), it's really an unprecedented game in Bears history. It deserves full credit, IMO.
What I liked best about the Tampa game is that it appeared to show the 'synergy' between Trubisky and Nagy, with the result being points on the scoreboard. Nagy's offense got pass targets into open spaces, Trubisky found the open targets with consistently accurate throws, and the Bears offense scored points. If there was one thing I disliked about the Jay Cutler Decade more than anything, it was that Cutler's offenses never scored points. Even in Cutler's relative 'good' seasons with Martz and Gase, the Bears offense was still pedestrian.
2) Bears starting LBs - Mack, Trevathan, Smith, Floyd
I guess this one is a bit dependent on nomenclature, as in some places I see Mack listed as a DE and in others I see him listed as an OLB. I still think of him as a 3-4 OLB. This starting group may be historically unprecedented...Mack, Smith and Floyd are all Top10 draft picks. I cannot recall any other LB group with 3 Top10 draft picks. That is amazing. This is kind of a backhanded compliment to Ryan Pace, but I think this shows that the NFL is designed for bad teams to eventually cycle back and become good. Teams like the Pats, Steelers, Packers, etc. haven't seen a Top10 draft pick in years, much less have 3 in one positional grouping. The positive of this is that the Bears defense is legit with elite talent...its not the smoke/mirrors job Fangio did in 2016.
