INDIANAPOLIS — Quarterback Mitch Trubisky can spend time this offseason on the beaches of California. He can live and hang out with Rams quarterback Jared Goff. And he can take part in an episode of ‘‘Celebrity Family Feud.’’
Basically, Trubisky can do whatever he wants. The Bears aren’t concerned. General manager Ryan Pace definitely isn’t. The organization trusts him.
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“I never worry about his work away from the building,” Pace said Wednesday at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center.
Trubisky, of course, has plenty of work ahead. He has to learn the verbiage, operation and intricacies of new coach Matt Nagy’s offense. Pace also expects Trubisky to assert himself as the true leader of the currently captain-less Bears.
“This is his team as he goes forward,” Pace said.
For better or worse, the Bears aren’t tempering their expectations for Trubisky in his second season despite all the changes around him. They want him to embrace and take charge of the new world they’ve built for him.
“It’s going to be important,” Pace said.
The Bears followed the Eagles’ three-level developmental model for quarterback Carson Wentz, then went a step further. It started with hiring Nagy but also included adding offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich, retaining quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone, then luring senior offensive consultant Brad Childress out of retirement.
Nagy’s offense — a blend of different philosophies and schemes — will develop in time. Its goal will be doing what’s best for Trubisky by understanding and accepting what he does best.
Helfrich will help implement run-pass options from Oregon, but it’s Childress who will be Nagy’s right-hand man during what Nagy called a “ramp-up period” in the early going.
Childress, a former head coach with the Vikings, will help install Andy Reid’s offense, while Nagy handles the additional duties that come with being a head coach. Childress, the only coach Nagy hired from the Chiefs, was Reid’s spread-game analyst, offensive coordinator, then assistant head coach.
“If I step out, for him to be able to come on in and just keep that thing going, that’s invaluable,” Nagy said. “It just made too much sense. Here’s a guy with all the experience. He can help me out as well with things that I can look to as a head coach.”
Nagy didn’t want to compare the offense that he’s building for Trubisky to what former Bears coach John Fox and offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains ran last year. But after going through Trubisky’s game film, Nagy said he saw a quarterback who experienced a “big growth” over 12 starts.
“What you could see is just some of the trust in his throws,” Nagy said. “What happens naturally is the game slows down for you the more and more experience you get, so that’s a benefit that he has going into this next year with us getting him. He has game experience, and he is not someone that is coming from the classroom.”
Everything that Nagy heard about Trubisky’s actions off the field as a rookie can only help. Pace was happy to fill him in.
“Some of the things he’s doing behind the scenes, kind of in the shadows, that might go unnoticed to a lot of people, it’s very natural for him,’’ Pace said. “He’s a natural leader. His work ethic, he’s very passionate about this. It’s really a 24/7 job for him. To be a good quarterback in this league, you have to be obsessed with being great, and Mitch definitely has that.”
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Email: ajahns@suntimes.com
