Chicago Bears: Mike Glennon Crumbled Under the Pressure

It may not be fair to pile on Mike Glennon after one game. It is the preseason after all, but it’s also impossible to argue that his Chicago Bears debut was disastrous.

Having a quiet night wouldn’t have been a bad thing. Maybe going 8-of-14 for 45 yards. Sure no big plays and too many incompletions but still not horrible. The last thing he could afford was a glaring blunder in his very first appearance as the declared starting quarterback for this team. Instead he lofted a poorly thrown pass into triple coverage right to Chris Harris Jr. who returned it for a pick-six touchdown just minutes into the game.

It’s made even worse on replays that show wide receiver Kendall Wright wide open on a shorter crossing route that would’ve gotten the first down. Instead Glennon went for a big play against one of the best secondaries in the NFL. He can’t argue he didn’t see Wright. He’s 6’7″ so there’s no way his vision was obscured. It looked and felt like he was trying to do too much. Why? Being aggressive is one excuse but also desperation may have played a part.

Mike Glennon knows he can’t hold off Trubisky without something big

Let’s face it. Glennon could do the professional schtick in front of the cameras, saying the Bears insisted that 2017 was “his” year. That sounds fine in May. He’s not stupid though. The writing was on the wall the moment Chicago turned in the card for Mitch Trubisky in April. Despite the $18.5 million pay day, his leash became a choke collar in the space of seconds.

The pressure was on. If he started making mistakes, the chants for the rookie was bound to grow deafening. The only way he could change minds was if he came out firing, putting up points against one of the best defenses in the league. That might get some people on his side, right? Certainly sounds like the act of a desperate man.

And the Broncos made him pay for it.

Now odds are that Glennon isn’t going to get benched over this. It’s easy to forget that he’s in a brand new offense and hasn’t had a lot of time to absorb it. Coaches have insisted no changes will come with the depth chart despite the rough outing. That’s fine. He deserves another chance. However, the seed has already been planted.

First impressions are everything in the NFL. Glennon couldn’t have picked a worse time to have one of the ugliest halves of his career, preseason or otherwise. All people will be able to focus on is the 0.0 passer rating. After years of dealing with mediocre-to-bad quarterback play, Bears fans are going to be open to him getting more chances. Not after the constant tease Jay Cutler was.

Glennon may be a great leader as so many teammates say. It’s clearer than ever that this doesn’t make him a great quarterback.