The Work Ryan Pace Did On Mitch Trubisky Is Downright Obsessive

A lot of people are treating the Ryan Pace Mitch Trubisky decision in the NFL draft like it was made on a whim. As if the Chicago Bears GM felt the pressure of the moment, panicked and decided to spend valuable draft capital to secure a young, inexperienced quarterback who likely won't help the team in 2017. Almost as if Pace was finally showing his own youth at the high profile job. Why do they think that? Simple. It's controversial, dramatic and easy to digest. Odds are it's also completely false. Anybody who has watched Pace operate over the past three offseasons can see plain as day this is not a man prone to shooting from the hip. Every single signing and draft pick reflects a man who sees the big picture. Saints head coach Sean Payton even admitted his admiration for the young executive. Back when he worked in New Orleans, his ability to find quality players in small places was lauded. A testament to his work ethic. Emily Kaplan of the MMQB revealed that this same borderline-obsession attention to detail went into the most important Bears draft pick of the past decade.

The Ryan Pace Mitch Trubisky connection built over time

Pace knows the score. He cut Jay Cutler. He allowed Brian Hoyer and Matt Barkley to leave in free agency. In essence he was literally rebuilding the QB position from the ground up. Mike Glennon was an expensive but key first step. It gave the team a little veteran credibility under center. That being said, it never felt like he was Pace's guy. The contract Glennon signed said so loud and clear. Though a three-year deal, its guaranteed money was gone after the first. It told many people that Pace still intended to finally draft his own quarterback. To get his Drew Brees. So he got to work on the 2017 draft class.

“Pace says he watched every snap Trubisky took in college, including the 2014 and 2015 seasons, when he sometimes relieved starter Marquise Williams. “Every time he got in the game,” Pace says, “something happened in a positive way.” Pace also says he saw Trubisky “play live multiple times,” though sources say the GM may have only attended the Sun Bowl and one other UNC game last season. To this, Pace joked that maybe he took in some games from the stands in disguise. The ultimate takeaway: The Bears did their due-diligence without sending up flares.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2KnXIJIQ8g Putting in that sort of time signals Pace viewed this decision as top priority. Fixing the quarterback position. Everything else is secondary. It's so unexpected and so refreshing. Understand this. In 2003, Jerry Angelo traded down from the #4 pick before taking Rex Grossman at #22 overall. In 1999, Mark Hatley traded down from #7 before taking Cade McNown at #12 overall. Both were major flops.

Bucking tradition

Even the revered Jim Finks who built the mighty 1985 Bears can't escape criticism. He gets the credit for taking Jim McMahon #5 over in 1982. What people fail to remember is Finks had been running the team since mid-1974. In other words that was his eighth draft. It took him that long to finally use a top pick on the quarterback position. In fact he hadn't taken one above the sixth round until that point. Bob Avellini, anybody? Vince Evans? It took a serious set of stones for Ryan Pace to go against a tradition that dates back decades. One that has held the Bears franchise in the icy grip of irrelevance far too often. If there is one human truth coming out of this, it's that people resist change. Bears fans weren't ready for Pace to dive in head first like that. This notion that he did it blind though? That he jumped the gun out of panic? It goes against the facts. Pace was prepared in every way possible. He knew exactly what he was doing and who he was getting. It's time to accept and, yes, embrace it.