Chicago Bears 2019 Position Battles: Will they carry three quarterbacks?

I’m going to breakdown each position group of the Chicago Bears with an eye towards potential training camp battles in this eleven-part series. With Chicago’s rookies and quarterbacks reporting to Bourbonnais today, let’s explore the three QBs on the Bears’ roster, because handicapping the odds for this groups to make the 53-man roster is a piece of cake.

Roster Locks

The Bears may not have the best quarterback situation in the NFL, but with Mitchell Trubisky and Chase Daniel as the one and two, the team is confident they have what it takes to win. The 24-year old Trubisky is coming off a Pro Bowl appearance and is primed to make a bigger splash in 2019. He has a swagger that comes from confidently knowing your role within the offense. His coaches and teammates have been lauding his command of the playbook now that he’s entering the 202 phase of the Matt Nagy system. I’m expecting big things from him and his offense in 2019.

Daniel isn’t as physically gifted as Trubisky, but the 33-year old veteran has been in a similar offensive system for most of his NFL career. He’s a mentor and sounding board in their quarterback room, but he’s far more than just a glorified assistant coach because he’s relatable as their peer. Plus he can sling it when called upon. In two games last year he completed 69.7% of his passes for 515 yards and he helped the Bears beat the Lions on Thanksgiving day.

A good bet to make it

The two mentioned above are locks, and the last QB on the roster is on the bubble.

On the bubble

History tells us the Bears won’t carry three quarterbacks on the active roster, so that leaves Tyler Bray heading home.

The practice squad could still be an option for the 27-year old Bray this year according to general manager Ryan Pace, who said about the situation that Bray an “exemption status.” Bray made his debut with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2013, was injured all of 2014 and 2015, but was back on the Chiefs in 2016 and 2017. He was an inactive member of their 53-man roster for most of his time in K.C.

Last year he was mostly on Chicago’s practice squad, but was active during the stretch while Trubisky was injured.

Bray technically only has one season on an NFL practice squad, and his previous time being inactive (instead of active) with the Chiefs and Bears makes him potentially one of the oldest practice squaders ever.