UNC Football: Mitchell Trubisky tosses three TDs, game-winner at Detroit

Former UNC football standout and current Chicago Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky tosses three touchdowns in season opener at Detroit

Mitchell Trubisky completed 20-of-36 passes for 242 yards and three touchdowns — including the game-winner with less than two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter — as the Chicago Bears beat the Detroit Lions by a final score of 27-23 at Ford Field on Sunday afternoon.

Trubisky wasn’t sharp for the majority of the afternoon, but he kicked it into high gear late in the game, tossing all three of his touchdown passes to three different receivers within a 12-minute time span. Prior to that, Trubisky and the Bears’ offense looked lethargic, to say the least.

To that point, Chicago’s defense had given up 23 points over four quarters, and the offense had done just enough to get a pair of Cairo Santos field goals in the second quarter. Nothing had worked for the Bears and their fourth-year signal-caller, who completed just eight of his first 20 passes to begin the game. It didn’t seem as if the Bears were going to put up a fight as Matthew Stafford and the Lions had led by double-digit points since early in the second half.

The Bears’ fourth quarter, however, and their game-winning drive in particular, was a thing of beauty. Chicago’s final possession of the game was set up by a Stafford interception that left the Bears in terrific field position with just under three minutes remaining in the game.

After a short ground gain and a neutral zone infraction on the Lions, Trubisky tossed one of the most clutch passes of his career. The deciding score of the game came with just 1:54 remaining in the game when the former Tar Heel hit third-year wide receiver Anthony Miller with a 27-yard strike to the front of the end zone for six.

The questions surrounding Trubisky to start the season will remain after Sunday’s game in Detroit, but there’s no doubt that “fourth quarter Mitch” has a real knack for the theatrics. All eyes will be on Trubisky when the Bears host the New York Giants for their home opener at Soldier Field.

Stick with Keeping It Heel for all the latest on Mitchell Trubisky, and UNC football alumni throughout the NFL.