Teams tried to trade up for Mitchell Trubisky, but not as high as No. 2

AP

The Bears weren’t the only team that wanted to trade up to draft quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. Chicago was just the only team that traded all the way up to No. 2.

Titans General Manager Jon Robinson said on SiriusXM NFL Radio that Tennessee was fielding calls at No. 5 from teams that wanted to trade up. But when the Bears moved up from No. 3 to No. 2 and took Trubisky, everyone stopped calling the Titans.

“We had some calls about pick No. 5,” Robinson said. “When the trade happened between San Francisco and Chicago, it kinda threw water on anything in that spot.”

Those comments suggest that Trubisky was higher than Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson on draft boards around the league, and that the Bears were far from alone in coveting Trubisky. That doesn’t mean the Bears made the right decision giving up three other picks to move up from No. 3 to No. 2, but it does show they acquired the consensus top quarterback in the draft.

70 responses to “Teams tried to trade up for Mitchell Trubisky, but not as high as No. 2

  1. We really don’t yet know who’s smart and who isn’t. If they had re-drafts from the last few years, how many teams do you think would be trying to trade up for Derek Carr and Dak Prescott? I think both of those guys would be the number one pick in a re-draft. Most of those GMs are the same GMs from this year. Who knows, maybe Davis Webb will be the guy we’re all talking about in four years.

  2. “That doesn’t mean the Bears made the right decision giving up three other picks to move up from No. 3 to No. 2, but it does show they acquired the consensus top quarterback in the draft.”

    I’m not sure that’s necessarily what that means. Feels like a bit of a leap in assumption to me.

  3. Speculation by the site. Nothing is a fact in the NFL draft when people tend to like and roll out smoke screens all day long.

  4. Ryan Pace already explained that they traded up because teams were calling them about trading up to 3 to draft him and they were worried about being leapfrogged.

  5. Pace must of thought Trubisky was Carson Wentz Level in order to do this. Lets hope hes right if hes wrong he could just be like Les Snead of the Rams was when Snead traded up for Goff!

  6. Have to give Lynch credit, he pulled the best bluff of the draft. Thank you Pace, DA Bears will have a top 5 next year. So you can choose a QB again .

  7. Cheer up Bears fan, Fox and Pace will get fired after this year’s dumpster fire, there will be a new GM and coach you’ll talk yourselves into liking, and hope will run freely through the city once more!

  8. mds – everyone is bagging on the Bears for this move, however, I am not. I like the fact that they were aggressive in going after the player that they wanted. The NFL is a quarterback driven league, and if Trubisky is the one the Bears wanted, then most assuredly they should have made the move.

    There have been a number of large trades in the draft for quarterbacks and other players. Sometimes they work out, sometimes they don’t. Failure because you tried is always better than failure because you did nothing.

    Mike Glennon is not the answer for the Bears. He was a stopgap they had in place – his contract screams that, as Josh Alper pointed out earlier today.

    Better to die fighting that to die a slow death from doing nothing.

  9. I dont get the trade no matter what excuse Pace gives. Its already been said by many pundits that this qb class was weak and next year’s will be fairly strong. I would have stayed at #3 and picked an actual play maker…..even if Trubisky was available.

    Go out and win your 5 games in 2018, get another pick in the top 10, and then get a legit franchise qb next April.

  10. So the Bears still could have gotten him at 3 or numerous picks for the selection? Ouch.

  11. QB Film Room says:

    Pace must of thought Trubisky was Carson Wentz Level in order to do this.
    ==================================

    Wentz? That’s not saying much.

  12. It really is as simple as ……if he ends up being a franchise qb the Bears made a great move regardless of the extra picks and if he doesnt,…well that trade up only magnifies the negative outlook.

    We wont know the answer on this for 3 years (estimated). Since my team did not draft him, he is not someone I am concerned with one way or the other but it would be nice to see some great young talent so Im certainly rooting for him.

  13. Bears draft room:

    “Do you think anyone would be crazy enough to jump up to #2 to grab this guy?”

    “I don’t know… we have to be sure.”

  14. The Titans said SOME teams called them about moving up to 5. That doesn’t mean that that was the entirety of teams looking to move up and grab Trubisky -the Bears were getting calls about #3 and the Niners were supposedly as well about their #2.

    If there was a 20% chance of somebody taking Trubisky at #2 and that means the Bears would miss out on a QB they really liked, then it was totally worth it to give up a couple of 3rds and a 4th -for the last time, those are not premium picks.

    You guys are experts at revisionist history -I remember an NBA Draft where the Bulls wanted to trade their pick which they used on Kirk Hinrich to Miami for Dwayne Wade -the Bulls refused to pull the trigger because they didn’t want to also give up Donyell Marshall. Looking back at it now, it seems so idiotic that the Bulls nixed the trade because they didn’t want to give up Donyell, but I bet at the time it happened you’d be writing an article about how they gave up too much.

  15. One thing that makes Trubisky unique is he scans the whole field. Yes,that’s what the pundits say and they only showed one play but that it still one more play than a certain stare down artist drafted last year.

    As a Browns fan I am elated the Bears took the decision out of their hands. I think the Browns got the best QB prospect in the draft through lucky circumstance for a change.

  16. Still highly, highly overrated. No more than an average NFL qb.

    —————————————————————–

    Well, would you rather have Trubisky or Cutler???

  17. Okay, so maybe Pace was justified, and if Trubisky pans out he definitely was, but it still sucks that he made the Bears look foolish and got his new QB booed at the Bulls game.

  18. I’ve never seen a GM approach a draft like he’s playing with house money the way I saw from Ryan Pace last weekend. He clearly has assurances from the top that he is safe for at least 2 more years. As a Bears fan it’s tough looking at the 5 guys we took and realizing Pace is basically punting the upcoming season in the 3rd year of a rebuild that is already well behind schedule.

    That all being said all I can do now is hope Trubisky is the 2nd coming of Aaron Rodgers (or at least Matthew Stafford) that the Bears brass clearly has him valued at.

  19. It was a bad move because they gave up 3 draft picks for a guy they would have gotten anyway. Obviously the other teams were the Chiefs and Texans since they eventually traded up for QB’s later in the draft but it’s it looks like either the 49ers played the Bears and made them think there was a bidding war for the kid or they fell for the media’s assumption that the Cleveland Browns were in the 1st round QB market which was proven false.

    The GM in Chicago is going to force the coaching staff to keep this kid on the bench as long as possible because he knows he’s fired the second he throws a dumb interception or gets injured.

  20. at the end of the day if Trubisky ends up being as good as Flacco or Rivers or Ryan (the guys just below the best of the best) then the price was not too high. Only if he struggles will they question this move. Good luck Mitchell! from Believe-Land

  21. RogerGoodell✓ᵛᵉʳᶦᶠᶦᵉᵈ says:
    May 2, 2017 6:22 PM
    bubbybrister/shovelpass says:
    May 2, 2017 5:49 PM
    Is that Forrest Gump in that photo?

    —————–
    —————–

    No. Forest Gump was an All-American

    26 2
    Report comment

    You sir, have won the internet!

  22. They were scared that some other teams may trade up with the 49ers, so even if the Niners were not planning to draft Trubisky, the Bears may not have been able to do so.

  23. Houston and KC both gave up future 1st rd picks for there QB. Bears gave up 3rd and 4th rounders. If you consider that the trade doesn’t look bad at all. Did he need to make the move? We will never know.

  24. The NFL draft is an interesting example of the butterfly effect. At the start there are thousands of different outcomes but in the end there is only 1

  25. I’d never fire Pace for making a move up to grab a QB. I’d fire the GM that didn’t have enough courage to stick his neck out to try to improve his team.

  26. I don’t know why the Bears made this move, spending these draft picks when there were good free agents they probably could have taken a run at. Jay Cutler comes to mind.

  27. However you wanna slice it the bottom line is this: If Trubisky becomes a 12 year franchise quarterback no one will care what the Bears gave up to move up one spot. If he doesn’t, it will be a bad trade no matter what. Unless, they find a different franchise qb, then no one will care again.

  28. So…Everyone who is killing the Bears for the trade up. We are all aware that Chicago traded again in the 2nd round with AZ and recouped the 4th rnd pick we lost this year and also acquired a 4th rnd pick for the 2018 draft as well…right?

    So essentially Chicago gave up a third this year and traded back from the 3rd to the 4th next year to get the guy they wanted.

    I can’t remember…does KC or Houston have first round pick next year?

  29. The conspiracy theorist in me believes that Trubisky is Paces guy for Sean Payton to begin grooming next year after his contract with New Orleans expires. Until then, Fox was given Glennon to try and save his job this year. If that doesn’t work, Payton will be the Bears head coach in 2018.

  30. I do not mind getting a QB but the price was too high with th additional picks when you have a team with giant holes. With that said I would have used my second to draft a possible 2017 starter on defense. Now the way I see this draft as 4 reaches and a gimp and another 3 and 13 season.

  31. Unless part of this story was left out, such as who SF talked to and who the Bears (then owning the 3 pick) talked to and who Jacksonville talked to and inculpatory evidence that all these teams had one single thing in mind and new what each other was attempting to do. The Bears net loss was one third round pick. They got a guy who Pace and Josh Lucas and everyone in the scouting department felt could be their guy. Frankly they lost very little, unless you have a time machine that proves Trubisky is a busted pick.

  32. They probably could have stood still and took him at 3, but if you believe the qb is your guy you gotta go get him. The real issue is if pace is right or not

  33. The problem that I have with it is that the draft class was weak to begin with and if someone does leapfrog them then they get fleeced of their picks but there are still 3 or 4 QB’s in that same class as him. In my opinion you got to KNOW this guy is going to be a superstar to waste that many draft picks when there is still Kizer, Watson and others still on the board.

  34. I feel good the Steelers did not reach for one of the big names in the draft. Dobbs may not be a walk on starter but he is probably an upgrade to Landry Jones. I can also see him picking up on things faster! Just got to improve on his accuracy

  35. Bears did a good job throwing teams off their scent. If teams knew they were hot for Trubisky they really may have tried to jump them.

  36. Trubisky is the best QB prospect since Derek Carr. Almost always makes the right read (unlike Watson) and hits his target (unlike Watson and Mahomes).

  37. I take back ANY concerns I had about John Lynch as a GM; he is THE MAN! Lynch’s ability to get Chicago to give up so much, to move up one spot is nothing short of GENIUS. He still got the player he wanted and additional picks. I don’t feel quite as bad about Mike Ditka giving up ALL the Saints additional picks, to get Ricky Williams.

  38. So San Francisco which will roll out the two QB’s the Bears couldn’t wait to get out of town as their starter and backup and will likely be looking to draft a QB next year came out ahead? Really?!?

  39. 3rd pick is high but not high enough if anyone likes the same guy you do, as much as you do. San Fran was openly looking to trade down, as were several other teams. That made the price of trading up come down, and that changed the perception of the QBs available. Once the Browns picked Garrett, it accelerated that change in perception, and suddenly the Bears saw an opportunity to get the guy they really liked, and the need to ensure nobody snatched him away with SF’s pick.

    I am glad it worked out the way it did. Much better than him falling to a team late in the round who could bench him and have him ready to go when the time came to move on from the current, successful starter. The draft is designed to get the best players on the worst teams, amd it worked out pretty well for those teams this year. Cleveland seems to have had a monster draft, Chicago got the guy they really wanted, and SF may have had the most successful draft of any team. Good on SF for staying at the table with Chicago, and not giving a better team the pick to take Chicago’s guy.

    I can’t stand the Bears and I loathe the Niners (Hawks fan) but I am happy the worst teams got what they wanted in the draft. Makes for better games for everyone.

  40. All I see here is that hindsight is 20/20. It looks like the Bears could’ve had Trubisky at #3…but they didn’t know that at the time, and I don’t blame them for trading up if they believe that’s their guy. It’s possible they thought they were pulling a fast one on a team that possibly wanted him (the 49ers), and it was also possible (for all the Bears knew) that the 49ers could’ve traded the pick to another QB-needy team. They eliminated the risk, and I don’t think they deserve this much grief. The media is just generating storylines.

  41. The Bears paid FAR TO MUCH to draft Trubisky, a QB who I don’t think will even be that good in the NFL. Trubisky reminds me far to much of Mark Sanchez, and thats not a good thing……..
    Hopefully after this season the Bears release Mike Glennon (who is a much better QB than Tru) allowing him to go somewhere where he can WIN, I’d like to see Bruce Arians pick him up in AZ

  42. The Bears paid FAR TO MUCH to draft Trubisky, a QB who I don’t think will even be that good in the NFL. Trubisky reminds me far to much of Mark Sanchez, and thats not a good thing……..
    Hopefully after this season the Bears release Mike Glennon (who is a much better QB than Tru) allowing him to go somewhere where he can WIN, I’d like to see Bruce Arians pick him up in AZ

  43. The Bears paid FAR TO MUCH to draft Trubisky, a QB who I don’t think will even be that good in the NFL. Trubisky reminds me far to much of Mark Sanchez, and thats not a good thing……..
    Hopefully after this season the Bears release Mike Glennon (who is a much better QB than Tru) allowing him to go somewhere where he can WIN, I’d like to see Bruce Arians pick him up in AZ

  44. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

    A three-win, cellar-dwelling, team isn’t going anywhere without making multiple risky moves.

    From limited film views, Trubisky looks smoother and more accurate than Mahomes (a restrained Manziel), but less exciting. So what?

    The race for best QB in the draft is between Trubisky and Watson. Watson has big-game embrace – like our boy Tommy.

    Multiple drafts have done exactly what for so many teams? Get a QB and you can spend the rest of your time solving the issues that aren’t necessarily limited to personnel.

    Trubisky will make mistakes. But he’ll be fine.

  45. Some of these comments suggest that the Bears are just 1 QB away from a 12-4 or 13-3 season. What baloney. The Bears have so many holes to fill that regardless of how well MT does 3 years from now they will still be struggling. Part of the draft process is just getting players with the abilities to try and fill a team’s holes and giving up so many choices just reduces the chances that the Bears will find all or at least some of those players.

    Pace and Fox gone by 1/1/2018.

  46. Just because one thing happened, doesn’t mean another thing didn’t happen. Fine, teams were calling the Titans for 5 to try to get Trubisky. The same teams and other teams may also have been calling the 49ers at 2 to get him.

    Isn’t Florio a lawyer? He should pimpslap you for this logical fallacy.

  47. Sean Payton has 4 more years left on his contract so the Bears would have to trade for him.

    I wonder if Josh McDaniel would be interested.

  48. what a weird title. How does a call to Tennessee imply that teams didn’t also call SF? Is absence of proof suddenly taken as proof of absence?

  49. When I first saw Trubisky tape, I saw visions of Mariota and would have loved to have him, but even if the bears didn’t trade picks 49ers still needed QB help

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