Chicago Bears Draft Prospect: Quarterback Jalen Hurts

Despite trading for Nick Foles to compete with Mitchell Trubisky, the Chicago Bears might lose both. As a result, they need someone to step in. Jalen Hurts could be that guy.

The Chicago Bears made waves in the first week of the 2020 NFL year by trading for quarterback Nick Foles. Yes, everyone expected them to acquire one to compete with starter Mitchell Trubisky. They were supposedly in on Teddy Bridgewater, Andy Dalton, Cam Newton, and Marcus Mariota.

Who they went with, however, was Foles. They traded their fourth-round compensatory draft pick for him. Foles and the Bears worked out a restructure to make the deal more acceptable.

One of the aspects of the deal is that Foles could void each of the final two years of the deal. That means if he wins the starting job and has a big year in 2020, he could void the deal and become a free agent looking for a huge deal.

After 2020 the Bears could also be without Trubisky. The team could pick up his fifth-year option. If they choose not to, Trubisky becomes a free agent. That means the Bears could be without Foles and Trubisky.

If that happens, the team needs to have someone ready to step in. They need to draft someone in this draft to be ready for 2021 in case the worst-case scenario happens.

Jalen Hurts is the most logical quarterback the Bears need to target. Let’s check out his profile:

Measurables:

Height: 6-foot-1, 222 pounds, 4.59 40-yard dash

Strengths:

Hurts is a dual-threat quarterback. Like Trubisky, he can hurt a defense with his legs if a play breaks down. You can also design run plays for him. In addition, he’d be a great option if you design moving pockets. Roll him out to move away from pressure and he’ll do a good job of hitting receivers.

Hurts had trouble with the deep ball but he improved that in the last two seasons.

Hurts has great leadership qualities. Despite moving from Alabama to Oklahoma, coaches and teammates from both schools have nothing but good things to say about him. Pressure doesn’t fade him. He’ll face it and still make good decisions. He finished with a career record of 38-4.

Weaknesses:

Hurts needs improvement as a pocket passer. He won’t beat defenses staying in the pocket. He needs to trust his pocket more. Perhaps sitting for a season and learning would be great for him.

Instead of checking down, he sometimes chooses to go for harder throws. When he goes long, he sometimes finds it late and when he throws his receivers have to slow down to make catches.

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How does he fit?

If you run a lot of Run/Pass/Option plays (aka RPOs), Hurts is your guy. He usually makes the right decision. If he tucks it and runs, he is efficient. Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy likes having dual-threat quarterbacks in his system. He just needs to have a quarterback who makes good decisions and Hurts, with a little seasoning, can be the answer if the Bears lose both Foles and Trubisky. Even if they don’t, Hurts can be a very good backup who eventually becomes the starter.