It’s not often, if ever, that left tackle Charles Leno Jr. drives into Halas Hall without seeing Chase Daniel’s truck in the parking lot.
“I’m talking about real early — sun’s-not-even-up early,” Leno said Tuesday. “He just comes into work every day, prepares like he’s a starter.”
The Bears’ respect level for their backup quarterback was already high before he made his first NFL start in almost four years on Thanksgiving. And then he proved unshakable in the Bears’ 23-16 victory against the Lions, completing 27 of 37 passes for 230 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions for a 106.8 passer rating.
The Bears are confident they can win with him — if he’s needed again Sunday against the Giants at MetLife Stadium.
“He’s a good quarterback,” right tackle Bobby Massie said. “There might have been some doubts coming into this game about what he can do, but I think he shut all that up, coming in on short notice and playing the way he played.”
And acting the way he did.
“He’s a field general, man,” Massie said. “He’s gonna get you lined up and tell you what the [heck] you gotta do.”
The Bears’ practice Wednesday will be the first sign of whether the team intends to start Mitch Trubisky on Sunday. Trubisky hurt the AC joint in his throwing shoulder Nov. 18 against the Vikings and hasn’t practiced since. The team said his injury isn’t serious.
Trubisky is itching to return, wide receiver Allen Robinson said.
“Any player doesn’t want to miss time,” he said. “Injuries are the toughest thing because that’s the only thing you really can’t control as a player. You control the plays you make, you control your mistakes, but the one thing [you can’t control] are injuries.”
Daniel’s degree of difficulty was significant, Robinson said. He didn’t have any game reps all season or practice snaps during the week. The Bears were limited to walkthroughs during their 85-hour turnaround between games.
“Just his command of the huddle, the communication,” Robinson said. “I think everybody stayed on the same page during the course of the game, and that’s a big thing on offense. It only takes one person to mess up a play.”
With a week’s worth of practice snaps, Daniel could have room to grow. Still, predicting a drastic uptick in his play would be foolish. He has made three career starts in three separate years, and his average stat line isn’t that different from his showing against Detroit: 21-for-31, 195 yards, one touchdown pass, no interceptions, three sacks.
Robinson said it’s tough to say how much better Daniel, 32, could be with a full week to prepare.
“He’s a pro — he went out there with a few walkthroughs and played well, led us to a ‘W,’ ” Robinson said.
The Bears would be comfortable with Daniel starting again, center Cody Whitehair said.
“We got a little bit of playing time with him,” Whitehair said. “So we think that if that’s the case, we’ll be fine.”
That’s why all last week Akiem Hicks preached to the Bears’ defensive linemen that there was no reason to worry. Hicks, who played alongside Daniel with the Saints, knew he would play well.
“I’m just a believer,” Hicks said moments after the game ended. “He proved me right.”
There’s no reason to think Daniel can’t do it again — if he’s needed.
“This is what you pay him for,” Leno said. “This is why he’s one of the top backup quarterbacks — because he can come in and perform like a starter.”
