Hub Arkush: Could a return to Chicago still be in the cards for Mitch Trubisky?

One thing I think we can all agree on is neither Bears general manager Ryan Pace or head coach Matt Nagy are going to name names when talking about who they hope to have under center for the 2021 season.

So I thought what might be instructive Tuesday was to ask Nagy what the three traits he’d value most would be in the quarterback he hopes to have?

“Here’s what I would say: When I first got hired, you come into this thing and obviously Mitchell being able to give you the dual threat that can run but also has the arm and ability to make every throw in the playbook, which he does,” Nagy said.

“The other part I say is decision-making. You all have heard me say over and over it’s important with decision-making.

“And then having the leadership skills. I’d say leadership, decision-making and if you have some versatility as a quarterback with your legs, great.”

What I found so interesting about that was one thing both Nagy and Pace raved about all last season was Trubisky’s leadership and how he’d grown in that area.

We know Trubisky’s decision making has been iffy, but it certainly got better the last five weeks of last season. And based on how totally inexperienced he was when he got drafted, it’s not unreasonable to believe he still has the ability to improve it.

My ears started to perk up because I had come under the impression Trubisky was off the table for the Bears from what sounded to me like farewell speeches when they talked about him at the season-ending press conference.

I was also intrigued by a piece of Nagy’s answer right at the start of our visit when he was asked how he hopes to solve his QB riddle.

“Now, you start with the quarterback position and for us, there’s a lot of different ways we can go right now,” Nagy said. “Whether it’s with Mitchell, whether it’s with Nick [Foles], if it’s with somebody outside.”

Now, obviously there’s nothing here to suggest the Bears still believe Trubisky is “who we thought he was” when they drafted him, but... apparently for Nagy he’s still on the inside?

I went in a different direction when mining for intel with Pace.

Knowing that every Bear fan and their brothers are yearning for a Deshaun Watson or Russell Wilson trade, I asked him what might cause him to think it would be a good idea to trade a franchise quarterback if he had one?

“I think there’s so many things that go on internal with teams around the league, and you never really know unless you’re within those walls,” Pace said. “They might not be popular decisions or decisions that everyone understands right now, but I think there’s things that go on behind the scenes that nobody knows.”

I know there’s not a ton in that answer but maybe just a little bit of “The devil you know is better than the devil you don’t.”

It’s even more intriguing when you consider what Nagy had to say about the process of adding talent this year with no combine and no in-person free agent and draft prospect visits.

“Without a doubt, yeah, that’s a big-time challenge in so many ways,” Nagy said. “It’s definitely unprecedented. It’s real.”

Let’s add one last piece.

As he wrapped up our Zoom chat, Pace talked about whether we should expect any “big swings” this year like he took on Trubisky and Khalil Mack?

“We’re going to see a lot of guys hit the market in the coming weeks,” Pace said. “I really think as a staff we’ve got to be able to pivot and adjust along the way to some things that we might not expect to allow us to maneuver through a really unprecedented offseason.”

While fans is ready to spend the entire dowry on Wilson or Watson, Pace is trying to stay nimble for any cap casualties he wants to jump on.

Together the GM and head coach sounded to me Tuesday a lot like guys who know they have a big job to do and may not be ready to invest all their chips on one QB if there’s any chance they still have one they can salvage.