First-and-10: #Bears rookie quarterback Mitch Trubisky is fine; his teammates need to step it up

A little help?

The positive vibe at Soldier Field was palpable from the moment rookie Mitch Trubisky walked onto the field for the Bears’ first possession Monday night. If we learned anything from his NFL debut, it’s that this kid will lead. What remains unanswered is the second part of that equation: Will anybody follow?

Trubisky rose to the occasion against the Vikings, but he didn’t get a whole lot of help in his first NFL start. An early drop and four penalties — at least three of them questionable — and mistakes in execution led to nine negative plays in the first half.

The Bears ran 10 behind-the-chains plays (11 or more yards to go for a first down) in the first half. And maybe it was coincidence, but Trubisky’s effectiveness seemed to wane as those long-down-and-distance plays added up. He was 9-for-11 for 90 yards (plus a 26-yard pass to Tre McBride that was nullified by a penalty) when Charles Leno Jr. committed the third penalty in a four-play span in the second quarter. He was 3-for-14 for 38 yards, a touchdown and an interception after that.

“We need to be better collectively around him,” tight end Zach Miller said. “Too many pre-snap penalties. Too many plays breaking down technique. I think he did everything he could for us to win that game. I’m excited for his future.”

The theory that a quarterback who elicits that kind of belief and provides that much hope would raise everybody’s level of play was a huge bust in Trubisky’s debut. It’s still early, but the next move belongs to Trubisky’s teammates.

2. From the Numbers Lie Department: Trubisky’s final passer rating of 60.1 actually was worse than Mike Glennon’s 67.5 rating against the Packers that got him benched. But despite Trubisky’s uneven performance, the one conclusion anyone could draw from his debut is that the Bears are much better off with him at quarterback than Glennon. With the immobile Glennon, it was hard to envision a scenario where he would succeed on this team without a gale-force wind at his back. With Trubisky’s mobility, gumption and accuracy on the move, there are all sorts of possibilities once the Bears realize what they have to work with.

3. Dave Toub is revered in Chicago for good reason, but current special-teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers outdid even Toub with two perfectly executed razzle-dazzle plays that gave the Bears a chance to win.

Pat O’Donnell, who threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Benny Cunningham on a fake punt against the Vikings, is the first Bears punter to throw a touchdown pass off a fake punt since at least the Halas era. The only other touchdown passes by punters came on fake field goals — Mike Horan in 1998 and Brad Maynard in 2001 and 2002.

“Hats off to the execution by everybody that was on the field,” Cunningham said. “I want to thank Coach [John] Fox and coach Jeff for trusting us to do that. It just felt good to make an impact and kind of change the momentum of the game.”

4. With outside linebacker Willie Young on injured reserve and out for the season with a torn triceps, the Bears are more than halfway toward their total of 19 players on IR last season. And that doesn’t include linebacker Lamarr Houston and wide receiver Rueben Randle, who were waived off IR in the preseason.

Young’s injury puts the focus on Pernell McPhee, who has a history of knee injuries related to wear-and-tear. McPhee played a season-high 45 of 70 snaps against the Vikings and had two quarterback hits. With 11 games to go, the Bears could be challenged to maximize his effectiveness and also keep him healthy.

5. Did you know? Wide receiver Kendall Wright was the leading receiver in the NFL debuts of Marcus Mariota and Trubisky. Wright led the Bears with four receptions for 46 yards against the Vikings. He had four receptions for 101 yards, including a 52-yard touchdown on the fifth snap of the game, in Mariota’s debut with the Titans in 2015.

6. At 1-4, the Bears are in last place in the NFC North for the 25th consecutive week — and alone in last place for the 18th consecutive week. In fact, the Bears haven’t been higher than third place in the division since Week 3 of the 2014 season under Marc Trestman, when they were tied for first at 2-1.

7. Since a 36-yard run against the Steelers in overtime that nearly was a 73-yard touchdown, rookie running back Tarik Cohen has 58 yards on 17 touches (3.4 average), with a long rush of seven yards and a long pass reception of eight yards.

Cohen was hemmed in by the Vikings’ defense everywhere he turn Monday night. He gained 13 yards on six carries and lost three yards on his only pass reception.

Is the league catching up to him?

“I felt like I kind of got away from my blocking,” Cohen said. “I was trying to make too many plays on my own instead of just following my tracks and trusting my O-line. It was more on me than on their defense.”

8. Tyre Brady Watch: The 6-3, 208-pound Marshall wide receiver from Homestead, Florida, had six receptions for 88 yards and two touchdowns (37 and 11 yards) — the difference in a 14-3 victory over Charlotte on Saturday. In five games for the Thundering Herd (5-1), Brady has 29 receptions for 495 yards (17.1 average) and four touchdowns.

9. Ex-Bears Player of the Week: Brian Hoyer was heroic in defeat for the 49ers on Sunday, throwing for 353 yards and two touchdowns in a 26-23 overtime loss to the Colts. With the 49ers trailing 23-9 with 9:56 left in the fourth quarter, Hoyer was 10-for-14 for 170 yards and two TDs to send the game to OT. He finished 29-for-46 for 353 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions for a 101.1 passer rating.

10. Bear-ometer: 4-12 — at Ravens (L); vs. Panthers (L); at Saints (L); vs. Packers (L); vs. Lions (W); at Eagles (L); vs. 49ers (W); at Bengals (L); at Lions (L); vs. Browns (W); at Vikings (L).

Follow me on Twitter @MarkPotash.

Email: mpotash@suntimes.com

First-and-10: Mitch Trubisky is fine; his teammates need to step it up