Rozner: Yet another 'learning experience' for Bears

After a few good quarters of football against some really bad teams, the narrative had been struck.

Again.

Matt Nagy and Mitch Trubisky had figured it out.

Again.

This was the player the Bears selected second overall and you can see why.

Again.

And then against a decent football team, Trubisky looked like Trubisky.

Again.

Familiarities are always rising and falling in America, especially in Chicago where it applies to the Bears, and despite the familiar look of this coach and quarterback, everyone is desperate to see something that isn't there.

It's understandable. Fans and media want so much to believe that the Bears, five years into a rebuild, have got it all going in the right direction.

Again.

Sunday's 21-13 loss in Green Bay, combined with Minnesota's victory in Los Angeles, eliminated the Bears (7-7) from the playoff picture, ending a season in which Ryan Pace, Nagy and Trubisky talked so much about the Super Bowl.

That seems like a long way off as they go into Year 6 with so many promises made and so few kept, the Bears with much to think about in the offseason.

Sure, they made it interesting Sunday after falling behind 21-3, but they failed on three chances to go down the field and tie the game.

One of those possessions ended when Trubisky threw directly to a Green Bay defensive lineman. As disturbing as was the throw itself was the question of what Trubisky was looking at.

No Bears receiver was within 20 yards, though Nagy dismissed it as, "A tough break."

The box score says 2 interceptions for the Bears' quarterback, but it could have easily been 5 or 6, with the appropriate number of terribly thrown passes, often under pressure when Trubisky panics and fires while backpedaling or flat-footed.

Trubisky also made some really good throws Sunday, mostly from outside the pocket, but Nagy doesn't seem interested in getting his QB on the move even though Trubisky begged for more movement in his postgame presser.

It sounded like a bit of a shot at the head coach, but it's really just a quarterback being honest about what he does best, and it's not the first time he's said it.

The complaint against Nagy continues to be that he doesn't throw it downfield enough, but Nagy doesn't trust his quarterback to throw it to the correct jersey, so he tries to keep it simple.

It's telling that Nagy tries as much as possible to get Trubisky to the line early in the no-huddle so the coach can read the defense for a quarterback that has displayed zero ability to figure out what the opposition is showing him.

There is, however, no explanation for why Nagy won't stay with the run, but this has been going on all season and it's not likely to change as long as Nagy believes he's Don Coryell.

Nagy was brought here to be the genius John Fox wasn't, to fix a broken quarterback and turn him into a Hall of Famer, but the offense entered this game ranked 29th in football and there's no way for the sycophants to spin it.

The head coach wants Trubisky to be Drew Brees and he's delusional if he thinks that's ever going to happen, so the alternative is to accept that he can't read a defense, can't place his backs and receivers in the right spot and can't make the right call.

Never mind making the right throw.

If Nagy were to accept that - if Pace would allow him to accept that and stop with the hard sell - then maybe you could rely on what Trubisky is good at, which is getting out of the pocket and eyeballing one receiver, taking off on the run if that receiver is covered.

Yes, the offensive line is a problem, no doubt, as Pace always prefers reaches, projects and steals over building from the inside out, but if you don't stay with the run then the opposing defense isn't going to respect it.

That leads to more pressure and more problems for Trubisky.

Stop me if this all sounds familiar, but after two years of Nagy, three years of Trubisky and five years of Pace, it's like watching the same game over and over and over again.

The postgame dissection also sounds the same after every loss, Trubisky talking about being behind the sticks, too many negative plays, having to be better on first and second down, too many third downs, and the always popular, no rhythm or flow to the offense.

If you've lost count of how many times he's said it, join the club.

The defense also doesn't get a free pass against a Packers offense that hasn't looked right since a win at Kansas City in October.

Despite the admirable presence of Akiem Hicks, playing in pain and with one arm, Khalil Mack remained invisible and the Bears missed about 10 tackles on the day.

So Nagy left you with this being "a learning experience," a tired expression that has been the only answer to a season that began with great expectations and ends with broken promises.

Again.