Bears coach John Fox remains committed to quarterback Mike Glennon, announcing Monday that Glennon will start Sunday's home game against the Steelers.
Glennon accounted for three of the Bears' four turnovers in the first half of Sunday's 29-7 loss to the Buccaneers in Tampa with two interceptions—one of which was returned for a touchdown—and a fumble. He rebounded to pass for 301 yards and post a 76.2 passer rating. But the early turnovers gave the Bears no chance to win.
"Mike Glennon will be our starting quarterback against Pittsburgh and we're going to do everything we can to get him prepared," Fox said Monday, one day after the Bears fell to 0-2 for the third straight season. "Not just Mike Glennon, our whole football team."
The quarterback situation has been a hot topic of conversation—both inside and outside Halas Hall—since the Bears traded up to select Mitchell Trubisky with the second pick in the draft after signing Glennon in free agency.
Bears quarterback Mike Glennon.
"It's something that upstairs we talk about every day," Fox said. "We had a pretty good feel of what we were doing to start with and we still feel pretty good about that moving forward with Mike being the guy and we'll see where that takes us. I can't predict the future. I don't think anybody here can. If you did, you'd be in another line of work."
With the Bears set to host the Steelers Sunday at Soldier Field, Fox was asked whether he still feels that Glennon gives the team the best chance to win.
"Well, I think after two games it's really hard to evaluate somebody," Fox said. "But the truth of the matter is that right now, that's the case. We're playing arguably one of the better teams we're going to play this year at home. We're going to do everything in our power to look a little bit more like we did in Week 1 than Week 2. It gives us a chance."
Glennon completed his first six passes on the Bears' initial possession Sunday before his seventh throw intended for tight end Dion Sims was intercepted by linebacker Kwon Alexander. It was both a poor decision and a poor throw by Glennon.
"If you asked Mike, and I think I'd say the same thing, that's a throw he'd like to have back," Fox said. "Yesterday I said that a lot was made of the quarterback, and the reality is we all had our signature on it. That doesn't mean he wasn't involved at all. I'm sure there were two or three plays everybody there, and the same with the coaches, that you'd like to have back."
Glennon certainly wasn't the only one to blame for Sunday's lopsided loss. Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen combined to rush for 20 yards on 16 carries, Cohen made a poor decision that resulted in a muffed punt deep in his own territory, Bears receivers dropped six passes and the defense committed three key holding penalties.
While continuing to firmly back Glennon, Fox also revealed that he's been pleased with the progress Trubisky has been making in practice.
"I love where he is," Fox said. "I love his growth. I think the guy works at it very hard. He's into it on game day. He's into it because you're one play away from being a starter like any backup. It doesn't matter the position. You have to prepare like you're one play away. I like where he is and I like his development."
Asked when he anticipates Trubisky will be ready to start, Fox said: "I think you just kind of know when it's time. You can't measure it all exactly the same because people are all different. I'm not the only one. There are a lot of people evaluating the situation, and like I said, I'd rather not try to predict the future."
