Whalen tells Bears fans: Give Trubisky a chance

South graduate, ex-CWRU QB is Chicago resident

South graduate and Chicago resident Dan Whalen has been talking up Mitch Trubisky around town: “A lot Bears fans are shaking their heads. I’ve been telling them, ‘Give him a chance.’ ”

Chicago is much like Cleveland in two ways:

• It lives and dies with its NFL team.

• It’s seemingly always looking for a franchise quarterback.

One observer has seen it from both sides: Willoughby South graduate and former Case Western Reserve All-America quarterback Dan Whalen.

Whalen is about six years older than Mitchell Trubisky, and now they live in the same city.

Whalen resides in downtown Chicago, and works for MOD Pizza as its director of real estate.

When he’s out and about for his job, many times discussions steer to the Bears, and, of course, Trubisky.

Everyone in town wants to know if Trubisky is the football savior, said Whalen.

“I gotta be honest, the reactions here are pretty mixed,” said Whalen, who threw for 9,720 yards and 87 touchdowns during his career at Case. “A lot Bears fans are shaking their heads. I’ve been telling them, ‘Give him a chance.’ ”

That’s because Whalen thinks Trubisky can be pretty good as an NFL quarterback.

Whalen gave the NFL a shot after he graduated from Case as a first-team Division III All-American but couldn’t find an interested team.

Since then, he’s made it a bit of a hobby analyzing incoming college QBs each year during the NFL draft.

Two QBs he’s liked over the years before they were drafted were the Seahawks’ Russell Wilson and the Cowboys’ Dak Prescott. Talk about spot-on analysis.

Whalen liked Wilson and Prescott because of intangibles. Both showed smarts on the field that made up for deficiencies in other areas.

As for his take on Trubisky, Whalen said: “He’s smart, and I sense he’s not a guy who gets emotional during a game. Those are two things that are huge for a QB, even before all the physical stuff.

“How well are you prepared for those few seconds after the ball is snapped to you? If you’re prepared, that will be the reason why you succeed.”

As for Trubisky’s future as what the team hopes is their franchise quarterback? “I think he’ll be a success here, but it will take time.”