Bears Trade For Foles, Setting Up Position Battle For Trubisky

Two seasons after leading the Philadelphia Eagles to an upset of the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, Nick Foles is heading to the Chicago Bears. He is positioned to play the role Ryan Tannehill did in Nashville last season, initially as a mentor to a young quarterback before taking the job for himself.

Foles, 31, was traded by the Jacksonville Jaguars to the Bears for a fourth-round pick in the upcoming draft, according to multiple reports. He will compete for playing time against Mitchell Trubisky, who the Bears selected ahead of Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson in the 2017 draft. 

Trubisky was supposed to have locked down the position for years to come but the Bears have not even exercised his fifth-year option, let alone engaged in talks on a contract extension. He complemented a strong defense during a 12-win season in 2018 but regressed badly last season, when the Bears went 8-8 and missed the playoffs.

There’s an urgency for the Bears to improve a disappointing offense because they believe they have a defense worthy of leading them to the Super Bowl. They are poised to add another part to that unit, agreeing a five-year deal with edge rusher Robert Quinn. 

Foles and the Bears could make a strong marriage. He signed a four-year, $88-million contract with the Jaguars as a free agent only a year ago but his stay there went bad when he was knocked out of the season-opening loss to the Chiefs with an injury to his left shoulder. 

Rookie Gardner Minshew, a sixth-round pick from Washington State, stepped in and immediately became a favorite. Foles returned as the starting quarterback for Week 10 but lasted only three games, being pulled for Minshew in a Week 12 loss to Tampa Bay. 

The Bears know a lot about Foles. They not only hired the Jaguars’ offensive coordinator, John DeFilippo, as their quarterback coach in January but lost to a Foles-led Eagles team in the first round of the playoffs after the 12-win season in 2018.

Bears coach Matt Nagy praised Foles before that upset by the Eagles at Soldier Field.

“(The) talents that he has, he’s a very confident kid in the huddle,’’ Nagy told NBC Sports Chicago’s J.J. Stankevitz. “He knows where he’s going with the football. And he’s a great playmaker … He’s just got a lot of great attributes that players trust.’’

Foles was 25-for-40 passing for 266 yards and two touchdowns in the Eagles’ 16-15 win, which turned on a missed field goal by the Bears’ Cody Parkey. He was replacing an injured Carson Wentz, which was also the case in Super Bowl 52. 

Nagy was 28-for-43 passing for 373 yards and three touchdowns in that game, earning MVP honors in the 41-33 victory over Tom Brady’s Patriots.

Foles’ contract with the Jaguars included $45.1 million in guaranteed money. He’s due to earn $15.125 million in 2020 and carries a cap figure of $21.8 million. The dead cap figure on his deal is $12.5 million in 2021 and $6.25 million in ’22.

The Bears could save almost $5 million if they decide to move on from Trubisky before next season. But there’s no advantage in terms of the salary cap, as his salary of $9.24 million would all be transferred as dead cap money. 

The Bears have until May 3 to decide whether to exercise a fifth-year option on Trubisky, which would allow him to earn about $24 million. It seems highly unlikely they would keep Trubisky and Foles on the roster beyond the upcoming season.

“We believe in Mitch,’’ General Manager Ryan Pace said at the NFL Combine in February. “Mitch knows he needs to be better. We need to be better around him. And that’s our goal.’’

Tannehill went to Nashville as a backup for Marcus Mariotta, who was the second overall pick in the 2015 draft. He was given a chance to start in Week 7 and held the job all season. He signed a four-year, $118-million contract to remain with the Titans, leading Mariotta to a new deal with the Raiders. 

Trubisky, who was the second pick in the 2018 draft, played behind Mike Glennon at the start of 2017 but was replaced by Chase Daniel only when he was hurt in 2018 and ’19. Foles has competed against Michael Vick, Mark Sanchez, Case Keenum, Alex Smith, Wentz and Minshew during an eight-year career with the Eagles, Rams, Chiefs and Jaguars. 

He’s used to competition. It will be interesting to see how Trubisky does when he’s tested by a former Super Bowl MVP.