The best and worst of 4 seasons with the Bears
Mitch Trubisky has started 50 games for the Bears since they traded up to select him with the No. 2 pick in the 2017 draft. Trubisky will make the final regular-season start of his rookie contract Sunday against the Packers at Soldier Field with a playoff spot on the line. Will it beTrubisky’s last in a Bears uniform? Tribune reporter Dan Wiederer ranked all 50 ofTrubisky’s starts. Here are the top six and bottom six. Find the complete rankings at chicagotribune.com/ bears
Top 6
1. Sept. 30,2018:Bears48, Buccaneers 10 19-for-26, 354 yards, six TDs, 53 rushing yards, 154.6 rating
Johnny Lujack’s 69-year-old franchise record for touchdown passes in a game was finally matched. Trubisky threwfor a half-dozen TDs — five of them before halftime — in a laugher win at Soldier Field. Trubisky passed for 289 yards in the first half as the Bears built a 38-3 lead. He never had thrown more than two TD passes in a game before that eruption. “It’s very humbling,” Trubisky said, “because you know the history of the Bears. Just a special day.’’
2. Nov. 11, 2018:Bears 34, Lions 22 23-for-30, 355 yards, three TDs, 18 rushing yards, one rushing TD, 148.6 rating
A 36-yard touchdown pass to Allen Robinson. A 45-yard score to Anthony Miller. A 26-yard touchdown to Robinson. A4-yard scoring run. While kicker CodyParkeywas pelting the Soldier Field uprights with missed kicks— four in all— Trubisky took the edge off with a commanding performance. His 355 passing yards that afternoon remain a career high.
3. Dec. 5, 2019:Bears 31, Cowboys 24
23-for-31, 244 yards, three TDs, one interception, 63 rushing yards, one rushing TD, 115.5 rating
Trubisky shook off an interception on the first possession to deliver one of the best games of his career. He used his arm to throw three touchdown passes, none bigger than an8-yarder toAllenRobinson in the closing seconds before halftime. He used his legs tochewup 63 rushing yards, including a nifty 23-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. A jubilant celebration ensued. “The best part of that for me,” Trubisky said, “was howexcitedmy teammates got. Really cool moment.”
4. Dec. 16, 2018:Bears 24, Packers 17
20-for-28, 235 yards, two TDs, 16 rushing yards, 120.4 rating
A 13-yard touchdown pass to Trey Burton in the fourth quarter broke a 14-14 tie and helped put the exclamation point on a glee-filled day at Soldier Field. The Bears clinched the NFC North championship and celebrated accordingly in “Club Dub.” For the first time, Trubisky defeated Aaron Rodgers and the Packers. All of it was worthy of Trubisky showing up to his postgame press conference in a blinking ugly Christmas sweater. “You want the lights on or the lights off?” Trubisky asked the media. On theywent. A true sign of a fun-filled season.
5. Nov. 28, 2019:Bears 24, Lions 20 29-for-38, 338 yards, three TDs, one interception, 4 rushing yards, 118.1 rating
You would be hard-pressed to find a dozen throws in Trubisky’s career that were prettier than his 32-yard deep shot to Anthony Miller on the game-winning drive. Two plays later, Trubisky hitDavid Montgomery for a 3-yard go-ahead score with 2:17 remaining to complete a nine- play, 90-yard march. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! The Bears offense rolled up a season-high 419 yards with Trubisky registering one of his two 300-yard passing performances of the season.
6. Sept. 23,2019:Bears 31, Redskins 15 25-for-31, 231 yards, three TDs, one interception, 2 rushing yards, 116.5 rating
Trubisky played a terrific first half with three touchdownpasses, including a highlight-reel off-script 36-yard deep shot to Taylor Gabriel, which may go down as one of the five best throws he made with the Bears. Coach Matt Nagy, however, seemed more concerned with Trubisky’s ill-advised interception in the end zone in the third quarter and his failure to recognize a 26-yard touchdown throwto Anthony Miller a bit earlier.
Bottom 6
45. Oct. 27, 2019:Chargers 17, Bears 16 23-for-35, 253 yards, one interception, 10 rushing yards, one lost fumble, 75.1 rating
Aninexcusable Bears meltdownended with questionable game management by Matt Nagy and a galling 41-yard missed field goal by Eddy Pineiro. But Trubisky did plenty to contribute to the unraveling. He threw a fourth-quarter interception, fumbled on the next drive and missed what should have been a win-sealing 58-yard touchdown pass to Taylor Gabriel. The Bears needed a win to keep their season on the rails. Instead, the wheels came off.
46. Nov. 3, 2019:Eagles 22, Bears 14
10-for-21, 125 yards, 15 rushing yards, 66.6 rating
Nine total yards of offense in the first half. We repeat: Nine. Total. Yards. The Bears were also 2-for-10 on third down. Coming on the heels of demoralizing home losses to the Saints and Chargers, this was the closing argument that the bottom had fallen out of the Bears’ 2019 season.
47. Sept. 29, 2019:Bears 16, Vikings 6
2-for-3, 9 yards, 70.1 rating
Trubisky injured his left shoulder while being sacked on the Bears’ opening drive. Chase Daniel took care of the offense for the rest of the day in a defensive-led rompof the Vikings.
48. Sept. 27,2020:Bears30, Falcons26
13-for-22, 128 yards, one TD, one interception, 45 rushing yards, 71.8 rating
On the possession before halftime, Trubisky had Anthony Miller open for a 57-yard touchdown pass but overthrew it by 2 yards. On the possession after halftime, Trubisky failed to see Falcons cornerback BlidiWreh-Wilson sitting on a crossing route to Jimmy Graham and threw a costly interception. Bears coach Matt Nagy had seen enough. His gut told him it was time. Trubisky was benched, then watched as Nick Foles led a comeback from 16 points down in the fourth quarter.
49. Dec. 9, 2018:Bears 15, Rams6
16-for-30, 110 yards, one TD, three interceptions, 23 rushing yards, 33.3 rating
The defense was again dominant in what was arguably the Bears’ signature win in a division championship season. Trubisky, though? After missing two games because of a right shoulder injury, he was flummoxed all night by coordinatorWade Phillips’ defense. Trubisky threw three interceptions but was lucky Rams quarterback Jared Goff responded twice with interceptions of his own. Trubisky’s 33.3 passer rating was the lowest of his career.
50. Sept. 5, 2019:Packers 10, Bears 3
26-for-45, 228 yards, one interception, 11 rushing yards, 62.1 rating
Considering the stage and spotlight for the kickoff game of the NFL’s 100th season and then mixing in the full-blown Super-Bowl-or-bust hype that escorted the Bears into the 2019 season, a Thursday night loss to the rival Packers proved demoralizing. Trubisky couldn’t spark the offense, which failed to score a touchdown in 12 possessions. Even worse, he threw an ill-advised interception in the end zone on a potential game-tying drive inthe fourth quarter. By his own admission, Trubisky let the disappointment of that loss linger longer than he should have.