College of Lake County math teacher helps fans calculate Bears’ quarterback equation
October 5, 2020
As the second week of the NFL ends, the Chicago Bears hold a shaky 2-0 record, beating the Detroit Lions in a come-from-behind win followed by a “holding onto the lead” win over the New York Giants.
In the first game of the season for the Bears, their offense and defense didn’t get off to a stellar start.
They went into the second half losing 20-6, and into the fourth quarter, still down, 23-6.
Yet, things started to turn around for them in the fourth quarter, led by fourth-year quarterback Mitchell Trubisky.
Trubisky threw three touchdown passes, a 2-yard pass to Jimmy Graham, a 1-yard pass to Javon Wims, and a 27-yard pass to Anthony Miller, which made them take the lead, 27-23, and ultimately provide a victory.
Yet, for the second game, we saw a change.
The Bears ultimately dominated the first half on offense and defense, scoring 17 points on offense and the defense held the Giants to zero points.
We saw two touchdown passes from Trubisky, a 28-yard pass to David Montgomery, and a 15-yard pass to Darnell Mooney, and then a solid 34-yard field goal by Cairo Santos.
Yet, in the second half, the New York Giants, minus top tier running back Saquon Barkley, who was taken out because of a first-half ACL tear, dominated and nearly caught up, but still lost the game 17-13.
In the first two games, this shows that the Bears are lacking consistency on both offense and defense.
Mitchell Trubisky has been a Chicago Bears talking point from the time he was drafted No. 2 overall in the 2016 draft.
He was chosen over quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson.
This has caused a lot of issues in Chicago because some people love him and want to see him succeed, while others feel that his position as Bears starter is a failure.
John Thomas, a football fan and precalculus teacher at CLC, did some math on Trubisky and the Bears.
“They need to let him go a bit in the fourth quarter,” Thomas said. “They get a lead in the first half, and then they rely upon their defense. They need to release the reins off of him to a certain extent.”
Trubisky, over the past few years, has statistically been unreliable and sporadic.
There are times when he shows pure domination and other times when he plays like a backup quarterback at best.
Yet coach Matt Nagy keeps letting Trubisky start, which many Bears fans don’t like.
The new quarterback addition to the Bears, Nick Foles, former 2018 Superbowl MVP of the Philadelphia Eagles, has fans wondering whether he should start over Trubisky.
Thomas did some calculating about the decision to start Trubisky over Foles and said the quality of competition could change the equation.
“Starting Trubisky at the beginning of the season is not a bad idea,” he said. “I have a feeling that when they start playing better teams, they’re going to make a switch. Foles is a reliable backup if things get bad.”
The March 31 trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars for Nick Foles put the Bears in a good position offensively.
Chicago gave up a fourth-round draft pick to get there.
In 2018, Foles was forced to replace regular Eagles starter, Carson Wentz, after he tore his ACL in Week 14.
He carried his team to their first Superbowl win.
In the Superbowl game, he threw for 373 yards, three touchdowns, and only one interception, winning him the MVP and ultimately the title of Superbowl champions against the New England Patriots.
While Foles is a 2018 Superbowl MVP, he had inconsistencies as a starter on the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Many fans want Foles to start, but many also have the same idea as Thomas: Let Trubisky start, and once we start to see the struggle from him, replace him with Foles.
As the Bears head into Week 3 of the regular season against the 0-2 Atlanta Falcons, who are coming off a debauched loss to the Dallas Cowboys, the Bears offense, led by Mitch Trubisky and the Bears defense will need to prove if they can be consistent in all four quarters.