Rams' Jared Goff says he's living with Bears' Mitch Trubisky this offseason
Jared Goff got drafted No. 1 overall in the 2016 NFL Draft. In his rookie season, he started seven games for the hapless Rams. The Rams fired Jeff Fisher (and his "middle-school offense") and hired Sean McVay. In Goff's second year, he threw 28 touchdowns and helped lead the Rams to the playoffs in McVay's new exciting offense.
Mitchell Trubisky got drafted No. 2 overall in the 2017 NFL Draft. In his rookie season, he started 12 games for the hapless Bears. The Bears fired John Fox (and his predictable offense) and hired Matt Nagy. Trubisky is now expected to make the leap in Nagy's new exciting offense.
The comparison between the Bears and Rams has already been made at great length. The Rams underperformed in 2016 before making a coaching switch and excelling under their new offensive mastermind. The Bears weren't good in 2017, but expectations are now high after they hired their own version of McVay.
Now, there's one more reason to compare the two. It turns out, Trubisky and Goff will be spending a good amount of time together in the offseason.
During a recent interview with Barstool Radio (warning: NSFW language), Goff revealed that he'll be living with Trubisky during the offseason because they're both training in Newport, Calif. Goff said they met through "an agent thing" and "the process."
"I'll be down in Newport. I'm staying with Mitchell Trubisky," Goff said. "I'm excited to spend some time with him, get down to Newport, hang out at the beach a little bit."
After Goff's rookie year, there wasn't much room to be optimistic. In seven starts, Goff completed 54.6 percent of his passes, averaged 5.3 yards per attempt, threw five touchdowns and seven picks, and compiled a 63.6 passer rating. He didn't win a single game. During that season, Rams running back Todd Gurley called their offense a "middle-school offense."
It turns out, though, coaching matters in the NFL. The Rams went out and hired McVay, the young offensive coordinator of the Redskins. Under McVay, Goff's completion percentage rose to 62.1, his average yards per attempt climbed to 8.0, his touchdown count increased to 28 while his interception count remained at seven, and his passer rating jumped up to 100.5. The Rams made the playoffs with an 11-win season.
Trubisky didn't win much in his rookie season, but he actually showed glimpses of promise. He completed 59.4 percent of his passes, averaged 6.6 yards per attempt, threw seven touchdowns (he also rushed for two touchdowns) and seven picks, and posted a 77.5 passer rating. After the season, Bears running back Jordan Howard called the offense "basic," saying that defenses "knew what we were going do."
So, the Bears did what the Rams did a year earlier: They hired a bright, young offensive mind in Nagy, who comes from the Chiefs. His job? Develop Trubisky into a franchise-changing quarterback.
The raw attributes are certainly there:
The best play of Mitch Trubisky’s young career. Not sure how many QBs make this play. pic.twitter.com/XXqx0thKmH — Sean Wagner-McGough (@seanjwagner) October 16, 2017
Now it's about surrounding him with talented playmakers, developing his raw talent, and getting the most out of him. A lot of that has to do with factors outside of Trubisky's control, like coaching and the front office's ability to bring in outside talent, but Trubisky also needs to work on refining his mechanics and adjusting to the rigors of the NFL.
Perhaps Goff can lend some insight into his rise from promising prospect to Pro Bowler during their time together in California.