What’s next for Mitch Trubisky? Film study, planning for short week

Rookie quarterback Mitch Trubisky had 10 days to prepare for his first NFL start. He has five to get ready for his next one.

How he handles this week — from the postgame film postmortem to the installation of a new game plan to playing his first road game Sunday in Baltimore — will further inform the Bears about their prized prospect.

‘‘Obviously, it’s a short week for him, for all of us,’’ guard Kyle Long said. ‘‘I’m excited to see how he responds. I know he’s disappointed in [Monday] night; he has every right to be. When you don’t win a game in the NFL, things are going to be tough.’’

Trubisky’s debut looked tough at times. He threw an interception with the score tied and less than three minutes left that led to Vikings’ winning field goal. He had as many completions in the first quarter as he did the rest of the game. And he finished with a 60.1 passer rating.

But the flashes were there — of electricity and, maybe with time, of greatness.

‘‘You can tell he’s going to be a special quarterback, and he’s going to be around here a very long time,’’ Long said. ‘‘We just need to do a better job of taking care of him and put him in position to get through his reads and stay ahead of the sticks. . . .

‘‘His preparation is obvious. He knows all the checks. He knows how to calm down a group of fat guys out there that are frantic. He’s got a quiet confidence, and it permeates through the huddle.’’

Outside linebacker Pernell McPhee said he has nothing left to learn about Trubisky, and tight end Zach Miller was impressed.

‘‘I think he did everything he could for us to win that game,’’ Miller said. ‘‘I’m excited for his future.’’

Now comes the real challenge. Teams have a regular-season scouting report on Trubisky and on what offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains wants to do with him. The Vikings adjusted well as the game went on, and teams will adjust from week to week.

The Bears must game-plan to Trubisky’s strengths, but they must use enough variety to keep teams honest — and him safe.

Coach John Fox predicted Trubisky would ‘‘see the things that young quarterbacks get to see’’ on film: mistakes. Trubisky went 12-for-25 for 128 yards with one touchdown, one fumble and one interception.

But he also made good decisions in his debut, Fox said, and had few operational mistakes, short of a delay-of-game penalty on fourth down that Fox blamed more on the officials than on Trubisky.

‘‘I thought he was sharp,’’ Fox said.

Trubisky is ready for the challenge of another game plan.

‘‘This week is going to be a little bit shorter,’’ he said. ‘‘But the process was a lot of fun. Can’t wait to do that again. But there’s a lot of work to do, and I’ll get back to it right away.’’

Progress awaits.

‘‘Now he’s got that first game out of his season,’’ McPhee said. ‘‘Now it’s time to go watch film and get better.’’

Follow me on Twitter @patrickfinley.

Email: pfinley@suntimes.com

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