Chicago explored its options and has a very notable new one under center.
The Bears are acquiring quarterback Nick Foles in a trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported. Jacksonville will receive a fourth-round pick in exchange for Foles, Garafolo added.
Foles spent just one season in Jacksonville, which was interrupted almost immediately by a broken collarbone in Week 1, but he signed a big contract to be the franchise guy starting in 2019. Then Gardner Minshew happened and Foles is now headed to Chicago, where a contract restructure will be required, per Garafolo, to get the deal done. For just one season, the Jaguars paid $30.5 million to Foles, who leaves behind $18.75 million in dead money on the salary cap after the trade, signaling a continued overhaul in Jacksonville, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported.
Foles earned that hefty contract from the Jaguars by leading the Philadelphia Eagles to a victory in Super Bowl LII and then coming off the bench to help them to the playoffs again in 2018. He'd proven he's worth significant compensation to a quarterback-needy team, but thanks to Minshew's unexpected success, his position as a starter, let alone a franchise quarterback, was uncertain. Jacksonville is getting value for Foles and out from under his contract, while the Bears are getting an option who could be a quality player and of a higher grade than Mitch Trubisky.
Trubisky, the former No. 2 overall pick of the 2017 draft, took a noticeable step backward in 2019, throwing seven less touchdowns, barely cracking 3,100 passing yards and finishing with a passer rating of 83, 15.4 points below his career-high mark from 2018. His decision-making slowed down (not in the good way) and his accuracy was so spotty, folks were frequently asking about his health to make sure the struggles weren't caused by an injury.
Chicago struggled mightily on offense as a result, and many seriously questioned the team's future at the position. With Trubisky entering his fourth season, the Bears had to make a decision on his fifth-year option beforehand. With insufficient proof available to convince Chicago's front office he's worth it, the Bears instead went out and got Foles.
Trubisky needs to prove he's not a bust, and he'll have a qualified quarterback (who has a ring) challenging him for his job from the outset. Such an endeavor will now begin with a quarterback competition in training camp. Things just got exciting at signal-caller in Chicago.