Don't look now, but the Chicago Bears' quarterback competition just hit third gear. Rookie Mitchell Trubisky drove the home team to a second-half lead before the Bears' defense gave up two late scores to fall 24-17 to the Denver Broncos.
Trubisky's last-second bid for a game-winning drive came up short, but the rookie was the story of Thursday's game. The No. 2 overall pick's play put a target squarely on Mike Glennon's back.
The presumptive starter, Glennon began his Chicago career in disastrous fashion.
The $18 million quarterback threw a pick-six on his second pass of the preseason.
The night didn't get any easier for Glennon against the Denver Broncos' vaunted No Fly Zone. He ended the night 2-of-8 passing for 20 yards, and a measly 2.5 yards per attempt. Glennon finished the night with a 0.0 QB rating after just over a quarter of play.
The 6-foot-6 quarterback showed shaky pocket presence, threw high down the field, and several passes failed to lead receivers into open spots. Glennon got little help from his offensive line, getting hit on a few third-down throws.
Glennon gave way to Mark Sanchez for two series before the real party commenced.
Mitch-a-palooza started at the end of the first half. The hype-fest might not end for a week.
Trubisky took over the final two minutes of the first half and promptly drove the Bears to a touchdown on a 50-yard blitz. The first-round pick punctuated a 4-for-4 drive by rolling to his left and tossing a TD to a wide-open Victor Cruz for the two-yard score. Trubisky's 24 yards on his opening drive was more than Glennon compiled all night.
Trubisky played the balance of second half, finishing 18-of-25 passing for 166 yards and a touchdown pass. He also added 38 yards rushing on three scampers. The rookie completed his first 10 throws, leading touchdown drives on his first two series. When he entered the game, the Bears trailed 10-0. Trubisky led them to 17 straight points. His bid to win the game after Chicago's defense gave up two late TDs failed on a heave out of bounds as time expired.
Trubisky's athleticism sits in stark contrast to that of Glennon and Sanchez. The 6-foot-3 signal-caller appeared most comfortable on the move. The Bears' offense played to that strength with a bevy of boot legs and play-action rollouts, which gave the rookie more time to throw and cut the field in half, making reads easier. Trubisky rolling to his right and throwing darts is a thing of beauty.
The rookie displayed pinpoint accuracy, arm strength to make all the throws, anticipation and good timing on a few comeback routes. His best throw of the night might have been a 24-yard whip down field on third-and-18 to Deonte Thompson while under immense pressure in the pocket. It's the type of throw that had scouts gushing during the draft process.
Trubisky still needs to make strides learning the scheme and running the offense under center, but there were few things to nitpick about the rookie's first appearance.
Trubisky had the benefit of facing Broncos backups, not the smothering unit Glennon faced. Coach John Fox will be sure to remind us of this during the week. But you can't teach the type of accuracy Trubisky displayed, especially when on the move, regardless of whether he was facing third- and fourth-stringers.
The Bears have consistently stuck by the party line that Glennon is the starter, with the hope of redshirting Trubisky for his rookie season. As we've seen in the past, those plans quickly get scrapped when a high first-round pick flashes in the preseason as Trubisky did in his first outing.
Fox might fight to keep the status quo in Chicago to open the season, but make no mistake, the 2017 Trubisky party started Thursday night. We'll see if it continues next Saturday when the Bears face the Arizona Cardinals. Stay tuned.