Part 1 of a 10-part series previewing the NFL Draft and analyzing the Bears’ needs.
The Bears’ starting quarterback in 2021 might not be on their roster.
They won’t commit to picking up Mitch Trubisky’s fifth-year option for 2021; even if they do, the Bears can cut him next offseason with no financial penalty.
Nick Foles, for whom they traded a fourth-round pick this offseason, could opt out of his three-year contract after this season — or next — as part of his restructured deal. Even if he doesn’t, Foles is 31 and has started more than half his team’s regular-season games twice in eight seasons.
The Bears, then, absolutely must consider drafting a quarterback with one of their top two picks — No. 43 or 50 overall — later this month.
Doing so seems counterintuitive after an offseason in which general manager Ryan Pace went into full win-now mode, adding Danny Trevathan, Robert Quinn, Jimmy Graham and Foles, who will all be 30 by the time the season begins. A rookie quarterback won’t help them in 2020 — but a safety, cornerback, offensive lineman or wide receiver would.
The Bears, though, are in quarterback purgatory. They spent four draft picks to take Trubisky second overall in 2017 and then gave Foles $21 million guaranteed. Friday, they said the two would compete in an open competition for the starting job.
Pace simply must take a swing in the draft to fix the most important position in sports — something he hasn’t done before, or since, picking Trubisky. The better question for him is: is there a quarterback worth taking in the middle of Round 2?
LSU’s Joe Burrow, Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa, Oregon’s Justin Herbert and Utah State’s Jordan Love will be off the board — likely in that order. The best three quarterbacks who could be available when the Bears pick are Georgia’s Jake Fromm, Washington’s Jacob Eason and Oklahoma’s Jalen Hurts.
Fromm has the physical build of an IT guy but is athletic enough to have played in the Little League World Series as a boy. He can read defenses as well as any quarterback in the draft, but his arm strength is suspect.
Eason, who transferred from Georgia when Fromm seized the starting job, is the opposite: he has a huge arm to match his 6-6 frame, but not nearly the same college success.
And Hurts, the Heisman runner-up, has the athleticism the Bears crave at the position, but not the accuracy.
History says the Bears won’t find their quarterback , though. The Broncos traded up to take Missouri quarterback Drew Lock No. 42 last year. He won four of his five starts, leading GM John Elway to declare him the Broncos’ quarterback of the future.
Lock was the first quarterback drafted between Picks 40 and 50 since 2010 — and only the 20th since the NFL-AFL merger. They combined to post one Pro Bowl season: Jake Plummer in 1997.
Finding a starting quarterback at No. 43 or 50 is a long shot. But the Bears not taking one at all would be worse.
QUARTERBACKS
Grading the Bears’ need: High. The Bears plan to have an open competition between Mitch Trubisky and Nick Foles. As the old saying goes, though, having two starting quarterbacks means you have none at all.
On the roster: Mitch Trubisky, Nick Foles, Tyler Bray
The five best draftees: LSU’s Joe Burrow, Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa, Oregon’s Justin Herbert, Utah State’s Jordan Love, Georgia’s Jake Fromm
Keep an eye on: Fromm. His arm isn’t as exciting as that of Washington’s Jacob Eason, nor are his legs as skilled as Oklahoma’s Jalen Hurts. He has a tremendous feel for the game, though, and hails from a place where the Bears do a lot of their draft shopping. General manager Ryan Pace has drafted four Georgia players — first-round picks Leonard Floyd and Roquan Smith, and receivers Javon Wims and Riley Ridley — since 2016. A recommendation by the Bulldogs staff to take Fromm — whose first college touchdown was to Wims — would carry a weight inside Halas Hall.
Close to home: Could a kid from Green Bay, Wis., ever quarterback the Bears? FIU’s James Morgan attended Ashwaubenon High School, a 1.2-mile walk from Lambeau Field. He started his college career at Bowling Green before transferring after two years. He set a FIU record with 26 touchdowns as a junior but struggled as a senior in part because of a knee injury. He figures to be a Day 3 pick or undrafted free agent.
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April 05, 2020 at 05:21PM
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Draft analysis: Bears must select a QB to try to escape purgatory - Chicago Sun-Times
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