The Chicago Bears choosing Mitchell Trubisky over Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson — and trading up to do so — remains one of the biggest misses in recent draft history. It’s a mistake that GM Ryan Pace won’t soon live down, and recent comments from Watson won’t help the situation.
Responding to a thread about how race may have played a factor in Chicago taking Trubisky over Mahomes and Watson, the Houston Texans quarterback said on Twitter that the Bears “never once” talked to him.
The bears NEVER ONCE talked to me.. https://t.co/nMX7JKW99P
— Deshaun Watson (@deshaunwatson) May 9, 2020
Teams don’t always talk to all prospects. Sometimes they are so locked in on certain picks that they don’t look into other players, which could be what happened here. And sometimes teams go in the opposite direction and don’t talk to a guy they like in an effort to throw off other teams.
Whether or not race was a factor, there is no debate about whether the Bears missed. They took a junior who had one big year as a starter and were thoroughly convinced he was the guy. But keep in mind that there was plenty of talk about Trubisky being the top quarterback in the draft, so the Bears weren’t alone in those feelings. Read up on some of these articles to refresh your memory.
The Bears, and whoever else thought Trubisky was the best quarterback in the draft, completely whiffed. Watson is and was better. Mahomes so far is doing better than both of them, and few had him in the discussion as one of the top two QBs. That’s more proof of how difficult the draft process is. It’s also proof that when Dabo Swinney talks, you should definitely listen.
