What Matt Nagy Sees In Mitch Many Others Don't

[soulman]

What Bears coach Matt Nagy sees in Mitchell Trubisky that a lot of people don't

Terez Paylor

Senior NFL writer

Yahoo SportsAug 19, 2019, 4:27 PM

https://sports.yahoo.com/what-bears-coach-matt-nagy-sees-in-mitchell-trubisky-that-a-lot-of-people-dont-222729359.html?src=rss

 

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. — The training camp reviews of his franchise quarterback were lukewarm at best, and when told this, Matt Nagy shook his head.

It’s a cool Sunday morning in Bourbannais, just minutes after Chicago’s final training camp practice open to the public, and Nagy — the second-year head coach of the resurgent Chicago Bears — has been asked to take stock of that quarterback, Mitchell Trubisky.

Last year at this time, Trubisky was just trying to absorb the playbook of his new head coach and get the team lined up correctly. Now, after a 12-4 season in which he led the Bears to the NFC North title, Trubisky has been given more responsibility, which means nailing down protections, seeing the defense better and working through progressions more efficiently.

This has been a process over the past several weeks, as several observers noted Trubisky has struggled against the Bears’ defense this preseason. Nagy contends that since he already knows the things Trubisky does well, the only way the offense can grow is if the third-year signal-caller pushes through the discomfort of making mistakes in practice, which serves to help the staff figure out everything else he can do.

“Mitch is growing as a quarterback, which is important,” Nagy told Yahoo Sports. “In this offense, it takes a good two-and-a-half, three years until I think you truly know it all, and he’s a kid that wants to be so perfect that sometimes I pull him up and say, ‘Hey it’s OK if you make an error, it’s OK to just play.’”

View photos: Bears coach Matt Nagy insists Mitchell Trubisky is growing as a quarterback and adapting to a changing offense. (Getty)

It’s a process similar to what Nagy went through with Alex Smith, who developed into the league’s best statistical deep-ball passer in 2017, his third and final year under Nagy’s tutelage in Kansas City. And when asked if it’s frustrating that all this could easily be taken as a negative, Nagy shook his head ... but not out of anger.

“No, no it’s not [frustrating] — I’m OK with it,” Nagy said. “As long as Mitchell knows that he’s learning how I coach and I’m learning how he plays.”

And trust, Trubisky does know. Nagy wanted to be sure of it on the morning of Aug. 13, when the two huddled in his office to take stock of where the offense is and most important, survey where it’s headed.

“We threw a lot at myself and the offense throughout training camp,” Trubisky explained. “Whether it’s adding more new stuff or pulling back a little bit and keeping it simple, [we’re] allowing the offense to play fast, allowing me to play fast.”

As Trubisky noted, this is the point of the preseason where Nagy starts fine-tuning what he wants the Bears’ offensive attack to look like over the year. The plan is to build on their bread-and-butter plays from last year while adding new plays that they’ve tested out this camp against their defense, one of the league’s best.

A lot of it, to be sure, hasn’t worked. But some of it has, including the up-tempo stuff that Nagy said intrigued him last year. The thought is if it works against Chicago’s third-ranked defensive unit, it should work against anyone.

“We’re just trying to get to a point where we can get in and out of the huddle fast and then just play fast,” Nagy said. “I felt like there were times last year where we did that, there were times we didn’t. So we as a coaching staff are figuring it out on offense because we’ve got tons of talent — we’ve got a lot of talent — and I don’t think you wanna just overcomplicate things. Just let players play.”

View photos: Despite being blamed for some of the Bears' problems on offense last season, Mitchell Trubisky has Matt Nagy's support. (Getty)

 

Particularly the quarterback. And it’s worth noting that Trubisky said he feels “really comfortable” with where he’s at in the offense, willing to spread the ball around to the Bears’ vast array of playmakers, from running backs Tarik Cohen and David Montgomery to wideouts Allen Robinson, Taylor Gabriel and Anthony Miller, as well as tight end Trey Burton.

“He just wants me to go out there and be the point guard, distribute the ball to our playmakers, and that’s really all I gotta do within this offense,” Trubisky said.

While that might be the case in 2019, it might not be enough to satisfy Bears fans who watched Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes and Houston’s Deshaun Watson, two quarterbacks taken after Trubisky in 2017, emerge last season as bonafide playmakers who could bail their teams out of trouble when things broke down on the field.

Nagy, however, is confident that Trubisky — a good athlete with a strong arm who can throw on the run and rushed for 421 yards and three touchdowns last season — has that verifiable playmaking gene, too.

“He has that, he has all that,” Nagy said. “Yeah, he’s got it all. And once he gets this offense down, you’ll see more of that.”

There’s already been signs of it.

“Watching game tape, seeing some of the blitzes we do on defense, he’s picking it up,” Nagy said. “He’s making the right Mike [linebacker] ID calls, sliding to the right guys, which is giving him time to throw the ball.”

Fans probably won’t get much of a chance to see any of this improvement before the Bears’ Sept. 5 opener against the Green Bay Packers, since Nagy isn’t big on playing his key starters during the preseason.

But will fans get to see a faster-paced version of an offense that ranked 21st in the league in 2018, further delivering on the up-tempo promise Nagy hinted at a year ago?

“We’ll see, we’ll see,” Nagy smiled. “We’re just getting started.”

Edited August 21, 2019 by soulman

[soulman]

21 minutes ago, soulman said:

It’s a process similar to what Nagy went through with Alex Smith, who developed into the league’s best statistical deep-ball passer in 2017, his third and final year under Nagy’s tutelage in Kansas City.

This is one area that has my attention.

I posted the other day an analysis from Jonathan Wood that indicated just how important big plays are in the scheme of success of any team both on offense and on defense.  Our defense has the talent to make those big plays but our offense has been lagging in that regard.

We're all well aware that Mitch did struggle somewhat with his deep throws last year and I emphasize somewhat because he wasn't terrible just inconsistent and when you have the kind of receiving talent we have you want to decrease that inconsistency.  So does Matt Nagy.

For the first time ever I truly feel we have the right HC/QB match.  Mitch is a sponge who only wants to be the best he can be and to win games.  Matt Nagy a former QB himself and a former successful QB coach is the perfect guy to get him there.  I believe that.

Think back to when KC rescued Alex Smith off the SF scrap heap.  No one felt that he was a very good QB.  He was mediocre at best with a mediocre W/L record and a 79.1 QBR.  During his 5 years in KC he managed to win 66% of his starts while increasing his TD % and decreasing his INT %, raised his QBR to 94.8 and became one of the most consistent passers in the NFL.  Matt Nagy helped him do it.

What many don't get is that Mitch Trubisky may never be the best QB in the NFL but he doesn't have to be.  He just needs to be one of the most efficient operating within Nagy schemes and let the rest take care of itself.  I have a feeling the analytical sites and media type will always be looking to find something wrong with him.  That's their game because it creates debate and for them that's good.

All Mitch has to concern himself with is learning all of Matt Nagy's scheme and operate it well.  As long as Pace can keep his core of players together and put a good team on the field who compliment Mitch offensively and who can play well enough defensively that he's not being asked to be that guy who carries the team he should do well and we should do well.

 

(oh and sorry about those huge gaps in the OP, couldn't edit them out)

Edited August 21, 2019 by soulman

[SLCbear]

I just want to get the Pro Bowl throws outta my head uggh  and for Mitch to hold onto those one or two dangerous throws he inevitably makes every game. His ability to move around and run is pretty special ...as for his deep ball, I see no reason why MT wouldn't become great there too. His mechanics and feel seem just fine ...

 

He's so young and raw and has higher ceiling than he gets credit for. He hardly played any meaning football (8starts I believe)  in bw HS & NFL. 

He put us in position to beat Philly and win his first playoff game, they were the defending champs. 

Edited August 22, 2019 by SLCbear

[beardown3231]

7 minutes ago, SLCbear said:

I just want to get the Pro Bowl throws outta my head uggh  and for Mitch to hold onto those one or two dangerous throws he inevitably makes every game. His ability to move around and run is pretty special ...as for his deep ball, I see no reason why MT wouldn't become great there too. His mechanics and feel seem just fine ...

 

He's so young and raw and has higher ceiling than he gets credit for. He hardly played any meaning football (8starts I believe)  in bw HS & NFL. 

He put us in position to beat Philly and win his first playoff game, they were the defending champs. 

[AZBearsFan]

14 minutes ago, SLCbear said:

I just want to get the Pro Bowl throws outta my head uggh

You mean the ones in a meaningless exhibition played in heavy rain? He has maybe never made more irrelevant throws. 

[AZBearsFan]

14 hours ago, soulman said:

This is one area that has my attention.

I posted the other day an analysis from Jonathan Wood that indicated just how important big plays are in the scheme of success of any team both on offense and on defense.  Our defense has the talent to make those big plays but our offense has been lagging in that regard.

We're all well aware that Mitch did struggle somewhat with his deep throws last year and I emphasize somewhat because he wasn't terrible just inconsistent and when you have the kind of receiving talent we have you want to decrease that inconsistency.  So does Matt Nagy.

For the first time ever I truly feel we have the right HC/QB match.  Mitch is a sponge who only wants to be the best he can be and to win games.  Matt Nagy a former QB himself and a former successful QB coach is the perfect guy to get him there.  I believe that.

Think back to when KC rescued Alex Smith off the SF scrap heap.  No one felt that he was a very good QB.  He was mediocre at best with a mediocre W/L record and a 79.1 QBR.  During his 5 years in KC he managed to win 66% of his starts while increasing his TD % and decreasing his INT %, raised his QBR to 94.8 and became one of the most consistent passers in the NFL.  Matt Nagy helped him do it.

What many don't get is that Mitch Trubisky may never be the best QB in the NFL but he doesn't have to be.  He just needs to be one of the most efficient operating within Nagy schemes and let the rest take care of itself.  I have a feeling the analytical sites and media type will always be looking to find something wrong with him.  That's their game because it creates debate and for them that's good.

All Mitch has to concern himself with is learning all of Matt Nagy's scheme and operate it well.  As long as Pace can keep his core of players together and put a good team on the field who compliment Mitch offensively and who can play well enough defensively that he's not being asked to be that guy who carries the team he should do well and we should do well.

 

(oh and sorry about those huge gaps in the OP, couldn't edit them out)

If we get 2017 Alex Smith from Mitch that would be just great with me. 24+ points in 75% of games, 269 ypg passing and a 5.2/1 TD/INT ratio is always gonna be acceptable. If we get that from our offense this year we should win almost every game. 

[SLCbear]

13 hours ago, AZBearsFan said:

You mean the ones in a meaningless exhibition played in heavy rain? He has maybe never made more irrelevant throws. 

He made at least 20 very dangerous throws into heavy coverage last season, plenty of those could've been picks. My only real concern with MT is what he sees at times ...is he forcing it into an ultra-tight window (Favre/Cutler) or is he unable to properly examine the field under pressure ?? 

 

[AZBearsFan]

26 minutes ago, SLCbear said:

He made at least 20 very dangerous throws into heavy coverage last season, plenty of those could've been picks. My only real concern with MT is what he sees at times ...is he forcing it into an ultra-tight window (Favre/Cutler) or is he unable to properly examine the field under pressure ?? 

I don’t disagree with any of that. Young players tend to make more of those kinds of mistakes and he needs to make less and less of them going forward without question. I just didn’t see the obvious relevance of his throws in the Pro Bowl compared to those in real games. 

[soulman]

Nagy has made a point throughout the offseason that one objective he and Mitch have is getting him to read faster, play faster, and get the ball out faster.  Nagy feels he plays much better when he simply reacts to what he sees and doesn't think to much.

A lot of what they did during camp was based on forcing new things on him testing him on what worked and what didn't and what he was most comfortable with.  Now they'll distill that down and add new stuff to the playbook based on what worked best.

[Nads786]

I feel like towards the end of the season Mitch was able to really reign in some of his erratic throws. This was in part because of Nagy's play calling style but also a bit of his growth. This regressed during the playoff game where he threw a couple of near picks. The 4th quarter was amazing and I'm hoping he can really grow from that experience. He was nearly perfect and threw some lasers to set us up to win that game. 

I don't think it's pressure that is affecting him, I think he needs more experience to just "play." I'm excited for game 1!

[dll2000]

Fans are going to live and die with every throw and kick for awhile aren't they?

Going to be missed throws and going to be missed kicks.

 

[Sugashane]

7 hours ago, AZBearsFan said:

I don’t disagree with any of that. Young players tend to make more of those kinds of mistakes and he needs to make less and less of them going forward without question. I just didn’t see the obvious relevance of his throws in the Pro Bowl compared to those in real games. 

With the RB corps there should be a solirld run game and Tru should feel much better about dumping the ball off for a 4-5 yard gain. If you can consistently start off 2nd and 6 or better you're setting yourself up for success. 

 

I don't have the stats to back up my thought but I believe we were 2nd and 8 or worse more than 2/3 of the league. That's a bad way to try and keep a drive going. 

21 hours ago, AZBearsFan said:

If we get 2017 Alex Smith from Mitch that would be just great with me. 24+ points in 75% of games, 269 ypg passing and a 5.2/1 TD/INT ratio is always gonna be acceptable. If we get that from our offense this year we should win almost every game. 

On top of the passing ypg he may also match up with the rushing yards too. It adds up after a season. 

[beardown3231]

Here's the way I look at it:

From the day he was drafted I knew it was going to be a project. He had like 300 college snaps compared to the 1,000+ that Mahomes and Watson had.

In his first year he had talentless hacks catching his throws and the coaching staff was a bunch of... talentless hacks.

In year two he gets some actual football players to catch the ball as well as actual coaches with actual brains and only throws 12 picks compared to 24 TD's and a few more rushing.

Looking at athleticism, work ethic and that IT factor I think he can be a top 12 NFL QB. While Mahomes is better and Watson is probably better, that kind of **** is meaningless to me and should be to everyone else, because if Trubisky is a top 12 QB this year and next, there's a very real chance of a championship somewhere in there.

[G08]

7 hours ago, dll2000 said:

Fans are going to live and die with every throw and kick for awhile aren't they?

Going to be missed throws and going to be missed kicks.

 

I was just thinking this... depending on the company you (we?) keep, it could make for a lonnnnnngggg season.

It's year 2 in a complex offense. Let's just let the kid grow and have our support.

[G08]

I can't wait for the moment when the offense is second nature to Trubisky and he can go out and just play football -- react to what he sees -- and let his talent and athleticism take over. THAT, my friends, is going to be pure ******* joy to watch.