Untethered, unfiltered: How Bears QB Mitch Trubisky changed his tone in 2020

Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky has been refreshingly real in the way he has talked about himself and the offense lately, but his emboldened attitude originated well before he returned as the starter.

Trubisky has been letting it fly — his version of that, at least, which is still somewhat restrained — ever since he realized he was on his own. It started when the Bears traded for Nick Foles and declined Trubisky’s fifth-year option in the spring, all of which left Trubisky “pissed off in a good way,” as he said in May.

There’s never been a question of Trubisky’s work ethic and motivation, but those moves delivered a wake-up call that nothing else could. He was no longer the franchise quarterback being carefully groomed with a host of hand-holding coaches dedicated to him making it. He became just another free-agent-to-be, battling Foles for the starting job and fighting to save his career.

That changed everything.

“I’m just trying to take control of my career and put it in the direction I want it to go,” Trubisky said. “Sometimes you gotta be a little more assertive and speak up for what you want to happen.

“Just continue to work hard, try to perfect my craft, get better each and every day, but there’s just a little switch that flipped in the beginning where I just had to get that edge a little bit to where I’ve gotta take control of my own destiny.”

There’s a clear connection between that epiphany and Trubisky’s recent outspokenness in shaping offensive game plans to better fit his skills. He has maintained his team-first reputation, but it’s no longer about quietly following orders from a team that bailed on him seven months ago.

It’s not selfish. It’s how every player should think.

Trubisky doesn’t necessarily have to listen anymore when coach Matt Nagy hammers, “You win from the pocket,” which never made sense when applied to Trubisky considering his athleticism was a big reason the Bears or any other team would’ve drafted him in the first place.

It’s a safe bet Nagy has stopped repeating that mantra, and the Bears’ offense is better for it.

Nagy likes the growth he’s seen from the 26-year-old in that aspect. He seems to enjoy Trubisky coming into his own and no longer parroting everything he and the assistants say. Nagy has emphasized collaboration more than ever since giving up play calling to offensive coordinator Bill Lazor, and Trubisky didn’t wait for them to offer him a seat at the table. He took it.

That’s a continuation of the empowerment Nagy noticed from the beginning.

“He really has taken it on,” Nagy said. “He’s put it completely on himself... We can all use this as a lesson on how to stay even-keeled, but yet you can use it and turn it into a positive and help your teammates, which inevitably helps yourself and helps your team. And that’s where he’s at right now.

“He’s in a great place, and I think it’s because of what happened. He’s using it. It’s a ton of credit to him for doing that.”

Trubisky has the leverage because as far as he is from being a superstar, he’s still undoubtedly better than Foles. The Bears are betting their season on him and they have no choice but to listen when he tries to steer them toward more roll-out passes and other plays that maximize his abilities.

And it’s working, at least against the middling-to-bad opponents he has faced so far. Aesthetically, it’s the best Trubisky has looked in his four seasons with the Bears. In four games since returning, he has a 99.7 passer rating. That’s 12 points higher than when he got benched in Week 3.

“I feel very comfortable right now,” Trubisky said. “I’m very confident with where we’re at and how we’re handling each week.”