Bear Digest

Former Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky has advice for Caleb Williams

If Caleb Williams is going to break the Chicago Bears' quarterback curse, he'd do well to listen to those who came before him.
Pete Martuneac|
Quinn Harris-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

The 2018 NFL season was a magical one for the Chicago Bears and their fans. Coming off of another abysmal season, new head coach Matt Nagy shocked the NFL world by guiding the Bears and second-year quarterback Mitch Trubisky to a 12-4 season and the NFC North title, Chicago's first division championship since the 2010 season. The fans believed that they had finally found the quarterback-head coach duo who could return the Bears to their glory days.

We all know how that went. The Bears would go 8-8 in each of their next two seasons, and Trubisky was allowed to hit free agency by the end of 2020. He has since served as a backup for the Buffalo Bills, a contender for the QB1 job in Pittsburgh, and is once again Buffalo's backup quarterback.

The Bears hosted the Bills for a joint practice at Halas Hall on Friday, where, of course, Trubisky was something of a fan favorite. After practice, he spoke to Chicago's media for a bit and reminisced about his stint as Chicago's starting quarterback while also offering some advice to Chicago's current QB1, Caleb Williams, about enjoying his time in this city.

Trubisky is exactly the kind of person to offer Williams advice because he went through an eerily similar situation: a highly-drafted second-year quarterback having to learn a whole new offense from an exciting former offensive coordinator. Here's what Trubisky had to say about that and what he would tell Williams.

The situation may feel like a case of déja vu for Bears fans, and both Trubisky and his successor, Justin Fields, serve as cautionary tales about young quarterbacks having to learn a whole new offense in their second season. But there's one important difference between these three players that Bears fans should remember: neither Trubisky nor Fields were near as talented as Williams.

The fans are hoping that this time things are finally different for one of the NFL's unluckiest franchises, and they have plenty of believers in their corner. The Bears are a popular pick to make the biggest leap forward in 2025, and the Caleb Williams-Ben Johnson pairing has the kind of sky-high upside that could see Chicago build a dynasty. For a fanbase as passionate as the Bears, that would make for one of the NFL's most special stories.

Caleb William
David Banks-Imagn Images

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Pete Martuneac
PETE MARTUNEAC

A former Marine and Purdue Boilermaker, Pete has been covering the Chicago Bears since 2022 as a senior contributor on BearsTalk. He lives with his wife, two kids and loyal dog.

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