Bears' John Fox says the Mitchell Trubisky hype reminds him of Tebowmania
The Bears raised a lot of eyebrows in April when they traded up with the 49ers to draft Mitchell Trubisky, but they haven't shown any signs of buyer's remorse. Trubisky certainly looked the part of future franchise QB in his preseason debut, going 18 of 25 for 166 yards while leading three scoring drives, one for a touchdown, while Mike Glennon floundered in his first game in a Bears uniform.
The hype isn't lost on head coach John Fox, who has been in these situations with young quarterbacks before.
"The first time we threw Tim Tebow out there in Denver it was pretty similar," Fox said. "That brought quite a bit of attention."
Obviously there were extraneous factors that contributed to the sheer insanity of Tebow hype at his peak, but Trubisky has a lot to prove. The move to get him has been heavily scrutinized from Day 1, and the only way to make the fans forget what they gave up for him is to perform early and often. His first game against the Broncos, in which his bid for a game-tying score ultimately came just short, was a step in the right direction, but it's only the preseason.
"There's a reason why we drafted him with the second pick of the draft," Fox added. "I think for the first time people got to see that in a Bears uniform, which I think is exciting."
If the rest of the Bears preseason plays out the same way, we may see a change in Fox's tune regarding the starter in Chicago. However, it was partially pressure that made the Broncos start Tebow in the first place while under Fox. This isn't even the first time this offseason that Fox has compared Trubisky to Tebow.
"I've been around situations like that before, back in my time at Denver even with Tebow," Fox said at training camp in June. "We're going to do whatever we can. As coaches, we got to put guys in positions where they can utilize their skill set, and it won't be any different this year."
Should Trubisky continue his impressive displays, second team or no second team, the Bears may find themselves with a tougher decision than they thought entering Week 1. Teams will play the player that gives them the best chance to win (see: Russell Wilson, Dak Prescott), and there's no reason to think the Bears will be any different.