Trubisky wasn’t going to save the 2020 Bears, but Sunday’s loss to Packers was brutal

With Virginia McCaskey in the stands at Lambeau Field and the sports world watching on “Sunday Night Football,” Mitch Trubisky stepped back into the starting quarterback role – complete with an impassioned pregame speech caught on camera.

What followed was another prime-time debacle.

Trubisky threw two interceptions into heavy coverage and surrendered one fumble, which was returned for a touchdown. The Packers cruised to a 41-25 win for their 100th win over their biggest rival. The Packers now lead the all-time series, 100-95-6, against the Bears.

"Every feeling that you have, we have," Bears head coach Matt Nagy said to Bears fans. "But we've got to fix it. And we've got to do it on the football field. And so this is where you rely on your leaders to do it. It's less talk and more action."

With starting quarterback Nick Foles out because of a hip injury, Trubisky started for the first time since Week 3. The 2017 No. 2 overall draft pick was never likely to save the 2020 season, but Sunday’s results were far worse than even the most pessimistic of prognosticators could've predicted.

Trubisky took a deep shot early in the game to receiver Darnell Mooney, who was covered by two Packers, and was picked off in the end zone.

"It was a situation where I was trying to push the ball downfield, trying to take a shot," Trubisky said. "The safety made a good play. Definitely looking back on it, I forced it a little too much."

Later, Packers outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith strip sacked Trubisky and teammate Preston Smith picked up the loose ball and ran it to the end zone for a touchdown.

Meanwhile, the Bears defense couldn’t find any way to stop Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. A Bears defense that has been so good at times this year – the No. 1 third-down defense in the NFL – finally appeared to have checked out. Rodgers hardly threw an incompletion as the Packers jumped out to a 27-3 lead. Rodgers threw three touchdown passes in the first half and finished with four.

The Bears were without Pro Bowl defensive tackle Akiem Hicks, which was a significant loss on the defensive line, especially against the run. But it shouldn’t have been the type of loss that led to a 41-point outburst by the Packers. The Bears defense missed tackles all night. It failed to create any turnovers.

"We're not going to point fingers, we're not going to blame," Nagy said. "We're going to line up and play the next game that they allow us to play and we go, and we fight for each other. That's all we're going to do."

Coming off a bye week, the Bears’ turned their four-game losing streak into five. Over the last six weeks, they’ve watched their playoff hopes wash down the drain in slow motion. The Bears have winnable games remaining on the schedule, but it’s fair to wonder if this losing streak will ever end.

As has been the story over the past four years, Trubisky did some nice things in Sunday's game, but they were overshadowed by the mistakes. Trubisky led three touchdown drives of 70 yards or more, but two of those came with the game already out of reach. He threw his second interception in the second half, this time throwing into triple coverage.

It was already apparent weeks ago that the Bears don't have a quarterback of the future. Sunday's performance cemented it. General manager Ryan Pace was spotted on the NBC broadcast shaking his head.

So were Bears fans everywhere.