‘No excuses’: QB Mitch Trubisky is learning but still winning for Bears

To quarterback Mitch Trubisky, avoiding score updates inside the Vikings’ massive and modern U.S. Bank Stadium shouldn’t be that difficult Sunday, even though two other games that affect the NFC playoff picture — 49ers-Rams and Redskins-Eagles — kick off at the same time.

“Sometimes when you step in between those lines, all that goes away,” Trubisky said.

Trubisky described it as having “tunnel vision.” And in a macro sense, it’s also a way to describe his approach to the highs and lows that he has experienced in his first year with coach Matt Nagy. He’s winning but clearly still learning.

“There are no excuses,” Trubisky said Monday. “It doesn’t matter that it’s our first year. It doesn’t matter that we have a new head coach and a new offense. We also want immediate results, so we are out there working hard and wanting to continue winning games.”

Trubisky is right where everyone should have expected him to be in his second season but his first in Nagy’s nuanced offense.

All of Trubisky’s individual numbers in 13 games this season are significantly better than what he posted in 12 last year under former coach John Fox and offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains, the most notable being his touchdown passes (24 to 7), passing yards (3,060 to 2,193), passer rating (96.0 to 77.5) and ESPN’s total QBR rating (71.8 to 31.6).

But Trubisky also needs to be better for an 11-4 team. It’s a complex reality for him, not only because of the success that the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and the Texans’ Deshaun Watson are experiencing, but because he typically has said as much every week.

Trubisky needs to be more consistent. He knows that; he’s his own worst critic. He has had six games with traditional passer ratings over 100 this season, and he has had six with ratings under 78.0. Still, it has helped that he’s winning while learning. That wasn’t the case last year.

Over the course of this season, Trubisky has noted that teams have attacked the Bears’ offense and him differently than what they’ve shown on film. In recent weeks, his patience was tested against the zone defenses of the Packers and 49ers. He had to find a balance between “staying aggressive” and “a completion mindset.”

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“It’s [a test] to all of us,” Nagy said. “It’s a testament to him. It helps him grow as a quarterback because you make more decisions. Not that you don’t do that versus man, but there’s holes in the zone areas. Now are the holes short, intermediate or long, with how they’re doing it with their scheme? He’s continuing to get a lot of looks.

“And I truly believe that in the long run, him getting these zone looks that he’s getting right now, he’s getting better and better at them.”

Nagy considered the Bears’ 25-20 win against the Vikings on Nov. 18 a defining one for them. But he also expects coach Mike Zimmer to make defensive adjustments as the Vikings try to re-define their own season with their playoffs lives at stake.

“Every game is just so different,” Nagy said.

Sunday’s is because of the playoff implications. But again, if Trubisky is playing, don’t expect him to pay much attention to the other games. He has his own game to win and still much to learn before the postseason.

“We’ve come a long way this season,” Trubisky said. “We’ve grown, we’ve learned and we’ve gotten a lot better, and we’re still winning games at the same time.

“You come to appreciate that, and then also put that behind you and know we have a lot in front of us as well. Let’s get back to work and do the little things and keep getting better so we can accomplish our goals.”