In a move a ton of us foresaw, Chase Daniel joins the Chicago Bears to be the backup quarterback. After a season with the Saints, Daniel returns to Matt Nagy and Brad Childress who were offensive assistants for the Chiefs while he was there.
Easily a good choice, starting quarterback Mitch Trubisky gets another guy in the room that knows the nuances of the offense and how to operate with both Childress and Nagy.
Ironically, coming out of Missouri and entering the draft, Daniel was flagged because teams weren’t sure his spread offense experience would be useful at the pro level. In a turn of events, that same experience is now what will help him push and the defense as he runs the scout team.
Is Daniel a game changer? If Trubisky can’t play for whatever reason (God forbid) can Daniel come in and save the season? I doubt that is the case, but you never know. He hasn’t had to throw much but teams continue to want him as insurance.
In today’s NFL, the backup quarterback position cannot be neglected.
The Super Bowl was just won by a backup. The NFC championship game was a battle between two backup quarterbacks. Dak Prescott was a backup taken in the middle of the draft. Jimmy Garoppolo who’s been undefeated since joining the 49ers was a backup in New England. He made a name for himself by filling in for Tom Brady and playing well.
The days of just putting any-old-Joe in at that spot are behind us. It literally can make or break your season.
I don’t believe this spells the end for Mark Sanchez. He and Trubisky also have a great relationship. I am curious if Sanchez is ready to hang up the cleats and start coaching, should that be the case an offensive assistant position could be waiting for him with the Bears to keep him close.
Daniel comes with plenty of knowledge and experience. At 31 years of age, he can be a mentor and “coach in uniform” for Trubisky as this new offense becomes more and more familiar to him.
This is a good signing for the Bears and should be a relatively inexpensive, yet valuable investment. His contract is voidable after one year. That means if Daniel plays a few games and is phenomenal in his showing, he can be a free agent and get the chance to start somewhere else.
That is what you call smart business.
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