Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Pace has become well-versed in the use of smoke and mirrors during the NFL off-season. No, he isn’t outright selling a bill of goods to anyone. But he is certainly leaving himself plenty of room to maneuver. With this particular off-season being a little more critical than others, that may not be a bad thing.
We’ve already seen the organization make changes to the coaching staff not long after claiming they hadn’t given much thought to it. Pace has repeatedly affirmed his commitment to his fourth-year passer, Mitchell Trubisky It makes sense as many view Trubisky’s success as a direct indicator of whether or not Pace is around in 2021.
The Smoke and Mirrors of the Chicago Bears Off-Season
Repeating History
Pace kept his thoughts close to the vest during the leadup to the 2017 NFL Draft. That ultimately led to his taking Trubisky ahead of Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. It was later revealed that the Bears head coach at the time, John Fox, would have gone a different route. Hindsight is 2020 so who knows, but how different would that draft have been had Pace consulted Fox?
Flash forward to this season and current Bears head coach Matt Nagy. His situation is different from Fox, who entered 2017 as a lame duck. It made at least some sense that he wouldn’t get to pick the groceries he wouldn’t necessarily be around to cook. One could question why he was even retained then, but the point remains Nagy should have more say.
That has seemingly been the case as we have heard the Bears coach be much more vocal about what he expects from his quarterback this season than his predecessor ever was. But Nagy’s words about what he feels Trubisky needs to improve upon directly contradict what Pace claimed to be the young quarterback’s strengths. So what are we to believe?
Words Worth Little
It should probably go without saying, but this is the season for spin. Every team (see: all 32) is doing their best to give misinformation to throw the competition off their trail. From feigning interest in a prospect to talking down another, nothing that is reported can be taken with much more than a grain of salt.
Media coverage is also rampant with every tidbit that comes out of the meetings that take place during the combine. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that when reports broke of the Bears reaching out to the Bengals about a potential trade for Andy Dalton, the story blew up. But, in reality, it shouldn’t have.
Things have been trending this way for some time, starting with the hiring of Bill Lazor to be the offensive coordinator. His familiarity with Dalton is better publicized than that between him and Nagy. The quarterback had some of his most successful seasons under Lazor and the Cincinnati Bengals are believed to be taking LSU’s Joe Burrow to replace him.
Actions Speak Louder
Meetings may be more telling for the Bears this time around. They have met with an abundance of prospects even with their current limited draft capital. Interestingly, they have only one confirmed meeting with a quarterback, Georgia’s Jake Fromm, signaling they could prefer to add a veteran. That’s wise given the caliber of the defense.
Their focus has been on the offensive line. That’s expected, but they’ve also had a couple of premium positions pop up. EDGE and wide receiver were among the positions the Bears met with and that too makes sense if they plan on pursuing a veteran passer. It might be a shock given the praise Pace has had for Leonard Floyd, but his situation is far from settled.
Taking, say K’Lavon Chaisson could allow Chicago to move Floyd as part of a package for a quarterback. That’s probably too much for Dalton, but it could be just right to pry Derek Carr from the Las Vegas Raiders. Regardless the message appears to be a clear one. The Bears will supplement other areas in the draft, any new quarterback will likely be a veteran.
Plan Taking Shape
We attempted to speculate how this off-season would go for the Bears and it hasn’t been far off. Calls for Teddy Bridgewater might go unanswered, but it does appear that Bears brass will seek to add (what they consider) legit competition for Trubisky. That’s awareness of the need to upgrade as well as an acknowledgment that they must get it right now.
They have also been heavily linked to Atlanta Falcons free-agent tight end, Austin Hooper. That’s a big name (and price tag). That further solidifies the Bears targeting offensive line, EDGE, wide receiver and safety in the draft. The order of those targets will be dependent on free agency and how the draft shakes but that’s the gist.
Dalton, if actually traded to the Bears, would be an upgrade over Trubisky. That doesn’t necessarily mean he gets the Bears over the hump. Another name, Nick Foles of the Jacksonville Jaguars, might be more intriguing but would cost more and still has yet to have any success outside of Philadelphia. Carr is the best fit but his situation is also the cloudiest.
Chicago Bears Smoke and Mirrors
The season of disinformation is here and Pace is a full participant. If anything, one could say that if he says he doesn’t know, he’s already made up his mind. Listing strengths for Trubisky that Nagy directly admitted his quarterback needs to work on may have been a Freudian slip. Or Pace genuinely believes all of it. The only thing we know is nothing.
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