Buffalo Bills’ Mitchell Trubisky says he’s happy to be where he wants

BUFFALO, NY – The Buffalo Bills’ best-drafted roster isn’t recently extended quarterback Josh Allen – it’s former Chicago Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky, who signed with Buffalo this offseason after four seasons in the Windy City.

The Bears turned down Trubisky’s fifth-year option despite drafting him second in 2017, and the North Carolina alum said he doesn’t have “as many options as you do. think it “in free agency. But when Buffalo showed interest, he saw it as a solid contingency plan.

“At first I wanted to go to a place where I could compete for a starting position, but the right situation didn’t come up and the opportunity wasn’t there,” he said. “I looked at the next best thing, where I could continue to develop and continue to progress and be a better player and a person and fall into this organization, and I’ve loved that since I came to Buffalo.

“It’s really nice to be part of a great team and to be somewhere where people want you here, and they care about how you progress as a person, as a player. an interesting process, but I feel like I’m where I’m supposed to be right now, and enjoying being here. “

Trubisky had a solid second season with the Bears, scoring 3,223 yards and 24 touchdowns, helping his team win 11 games and NFC North in the process. But he failed to build on that performance over the next two seasons and was eventually replaced by Nick Foles in the starting lineup early last season before returning to the starting role later in the season. .

Bills general manager Brandon Beane has pointed out that Trubisky’s 50 career starts were an advantage to having him in the team’s quarterback room, and although he went 29-21 in those starts , Trubisky said he didn’t feel like he had a raw deal in Chicago. . He also said his departure from Chicago was no surprise, given his performance over his last two seasons with the team.

“I kind of saw it coming, just the way I was progressing. Year 2 was really good, then years 3 and 4, not as good,” Trubisky said. “I was dealing with injuries and stuff but like I said it was disappointing but it wasn’t a surprise. Throughout the process you can sort of see that they believed less and less in me and less, and that’s just how this process unfolded. “

Shortly after signing Trubisky, Beane said he and his staff didn’t expect the 26-year-old to be in Buffalo for more than a season as he replenishes his stock as a starting quarterback – but Trubisky has already made an impression on his teammates during his short stint in western New York.

Wide receiver Stefon Diggs said he could “certainly sense” Trubisky’s presence on the training ground, and Allen said the two have grown closer in recent months.

“Mitch was awesome. He quickly became a good friend of mine,” Allen said. “He comes up with a great attitude every day and he works his tail and he’s not afraid to ask offensive questions. He’s here to help this team win in any way. lucky to have it, I’ll tell you.

“He’s got another year of experience, and he’s played in, like, 50’s games. So he’s got a lot of experience and a lot of knowledge and a lot of ideas that he pitched in the meetings. are lucky to have him, and he’s going to continue to be great for us. “

Bills coach Sean McDermott said the team is still determining which starters will play in Friday’s opener against the Detroit Lions; Allen is likely to sit as starting left tackle Dion Dawkins continues to make his way from the reserve / COVID-19 roster.

Friday represents Trubisky’s first step towards rebuilding his image as a starter and against a familiar opponent – he went 5-3 against the Lions in his four seasons at Chicago.

But next week the Bills head to Soldier Field to play against the Bears and although he has said he is focusing on the Lions, Trubisky admits it would be weird to face his old team.

“It will be weird to go back there,” he said. “But I can’t wait to go back.”