Mitchell Trubisky was drafted by the Chicago Bears the year before Matt Nagy was hired as head coach. Many viewed that as a problem from the start, and those concerns quickly materialized. At one point, Nagy reportedly stopped making a significant effort to help his quarterback succeed.
Adam Jahns and Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic spoke with several sources about the dysfunction that has existed in Chicago for the last decade. According to one of those sources, Trubisky and Nagy set up a one-on-one meeting after the 2019 season. That was Trubisky’s third year in the NFL and second under Nagy. The former No. 2 overall pick struggled with just 3,138 yards, 17 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 15 games. He wanted to discuss how he and Nagy could improve their partnership, and he prepared notes for a meeting.
Nagy reportedly “no-showed” Trubisky, and the QB left his notes behind. It was unclear if the meeting was rescheduled or ever actually took place.
The following season, Nagy was hard on Trubisky out of the gate. He supposedly blasted the former North Carolina star in front of the entire team while watching film from Chicago’s 17-13 loss to the New York Giants in Week 2. Trubisky apparently made the wrong read when completing a 12-yard pass to tight end Cole Kmet. The drive ended with a touchdown, but Nagy made it a point to blast Trubisky for missing a wide-open receiver on the play where he threw to Kmet.
“Nagy proceeded to chastise Mitch for being uncoachable and not throwing it to the proper guy in front of the whole team,” a source told The Athletic.
Trubisky was benched the following week after throwing an interception against the Atlanta Falcons. Nick Foles, whom the Bears acquired in a trade prior to the season, took over. Trubisky started again later in the year after Foles got hurt, but it was clear at that point that Nagy had moved on from him.
Former Bears general manager Ryan Pace is the one who made the Trubisky pick in 2017. He said prior to last season that he learned a valuable lesson from it.
Whichever direction the Bears go this offseason, it’s clear they need a coach and GM who are on the same page. Nagy’s issues with Trubisky helped illustrate why that is so important.
Photo: Dec 26, 2021; Seattle, Washington, USA; Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy stands on the sideline during the second quarter at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
