'You take this thing over right now:' How Bears Trubisky responded to Nagy's challenge
When the Bears came out for the second half last week with a slim 7-3 lead over the Jets after a decidedly unimpressive 30 minutes of offense, coach Matt Nagy challenged Mitch Trubisky.
The second-year quarterback's first half numbers weren't bad, but only because running back Tarik Cohen had taken a screen pass 70 yards for a touchdown. Without that one play, Trubisky's passer rating would have been 45.8, so Nagy put it to him.
“I'm gonna challenge you, right now, these two quarters for greatness, you got me,” Nagy shouted, a clip that can be heard at ChicagoBears.com, which had Nagy miked up for the game.
“Yes sir,” Trubisky replied.
“I wanna see it come out of you,” Nagy said.
“Yes sir,” Trubisky replied again.
“You take this thing over right now.”
“Yes sir,” Trubisky says a third time.
Minutes later Trubisky made arguably his most impressive throw of the season, a back shoulder connection to Anthony Miller in the end zone for a 4-yard touchdown and a 14-3 lead.
“I think he responded well,” Nagy said. “Mitch'll be the first to tell you that as an offense, we weren't clicking in the first half, and sometimes you need that spark. Mitch naturally does that, he has that in him, and he'll get the guys going.
“But I felt like at that time right there, it was still a very close game, we were getting ready to get the ball to start the third quarter, and you look for that spark. For what it's worth, I just want him to know that I'm behind him and that I support him. But I also want him to know that I'm going to put my thumb on him, too. I expect him to be great, so I want to challenge him to do great things.”
Trubisky finished with a 102.7 passer rating, clearly buoyed by the Cohen touchdown, but still it was his third 100.0-plus mark in the past four games. He had just three in 12 starts last year before Nagy arrived. It's only natural that Trubisky would be under Nagy's thumb, since the head coach's work as a QB mentor and offensive coordinator catapulted him to the Bears' top job. Trubisky is more than fine with the relationship.
“I love it,” he said. “I think the best players, they want to be the hardest workers and they also want to be pushed the most. So we have a really good relationship, where I want him criticizing and I want him pushing me all the time. But we also have that loving relationship, and then we have that respect that goes both ways. I know he just wants the best for me, and I just want the best for him as well. No hard feelings, and no sensitivity when I'm being criticized, because he does want me to be great. He said it the second half, and that's what I'm trying to do.”
Nagy has often praised Trubisky for his desire to get immediate feedback on his mistakes, even before he reaches the sideline, for his focus on improving and his tireless work at honing his craft. So Nagy is steadfast in the knowledge that Trubisky will accept criticism with the right attitude.
“There's no one on our football team that's going to accept the challenge more than him,” Nagy said. “Ultimately we want to come out with the win, and I was really proud of him on the touchdown pass that he made. We always talk about, 'Is it the plays or the players?' and that one was the players.”
• Bob LeGere is a senior writer at Pro Football Weekly. Follow Bob's Bears reports on Twitter @BobLeGere or @PFWeekly.