What if?
To get into the “what if” of this situation, you must first consider this: Chicago had the third overall pick before trading up for Mitchell Trubisky. In all likelihood, they would have taken Deshaun Watson before Patrick Mahomes, but then for the sake of the hypothetical, we’ll say they picked up Patrick Mahomes with the third overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.
To take it even one step further, had Chicago drafted Mahomes, they wouldn’t have had to trade up to get their guy. That means they retain three crucial draft picks: the 67th pick in that same draft, the 11th pick in that draft, and a third round selection the next season. No, you can’t assume anybody selected with these picks would be a star, but at the very least, there would be a little more talent in the Windy City.
Take it to the next level and you start to wonder what this team would look like with Mahomes at the helm instead of Trubisky. For starters, you can compare the career accolades of the two quarterbacks. Trubisky has made one Pro Bowl as a replacement for Jared Goff, who would play in the Super Bowl. Mahomes, on the other hand, has already won every award a quarterback can hope to win. From a Super Bowl MVP to First-Team All-Pro to regular season MVP; you name it, he has it.
If he had put up this type of production for the past two seasons as a Chicago Bear, you can book it. This proud city would have easily added a Super Bowl to their resume in 2018, and possibly even another one in 2019. Just think about it: they made it to the playoffs with Mitchell Trubisky and lost because of a bad kicker. That being said, there’s no guarantee that Mahomes would have the same type of production in Chicago. Look back and you won’t find another Pro Bowl quarterback for this team since Jim McMahon in 1985 with just a single appearance.
The curse at the quarterback position in Chicago has some legs to it. Past Bear quarterbacks include Jay Cutler, Rex Grossman, and an entire list of players that have since been forgotten. Of course, Mahomes is a once-in-a-generation talent, but would he have been able to overcome this stagnant offense that Matt Nagy inherited?
When considering this, you have to first consider the fact that Nagy was the offensive coordinator in Kansas City before taking the Head Coach job in Chicago. He set the foundation for the legendary offense that is currently being run by Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid. It’s not far fetched to say that Nagy could have at least brought similar success to Chicago’s offense.
In fact, if you look at a Chicago team with Patrick Mahomes, you’ll find a roster that has almost no weaknesses. At running back, David Montgomery is a promising young back. At wide receiver, Chicago has a criminally underrated wide receiver in Allen Robinson complimented by veteran tight end Jimmy Graham. The offensive line struggled last season, but retains most of the talent that was once considered a top ten unit.
This move would instantly cement this team as a title contender for as long as they can keep most of these players on the team. But unfortunately, Ryan Pace didn’t draft Patrick Mahomes. The Bears have done a great job trying to keep this team afloat without a strong quarterback, but following a 10-year contract extension with the Chiefs, it’s unlikely that we’ll be seeing this generational talent in another uniform for years to come.
