Former UNC football star released by the Pittsburgh Steelers

The Pittsburgh Steelers announced that they have released former UNC football star quarterback Mitchell Trubisky.

In three seasons with the Tar Heels, Trubisky posted a 67.5% completion rate with 4,762 career yards to go along with 41 touchdowns and only 10 interceptions. It is safe to say that Trubisky’s college success has not translated to the National Football League. 

In 2017, the Chicago Bears selected Mitchell Trubisky with the 2nd overall pick. He spent four seasons with the Bears and was selected for the 2018 Pro Bowl. Taking care of the football was something that Trubisky took pride in when he was in Chapel Hill, but the pressure of the NFL seemed to get the best of him. Trubisky threw 37 interceptions in his four seasons with the Chicago Bears. 

Once the Bears organization realized that they were not reaching their goals with Trubisky in charge of the offense, they moved on to Justin Fields. Trubisky then had to accept a backup role with the Buffalo Bills that lasted one season before going to the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

The Steelers have seemed to struggle at the quarterback position ever since the retirement of Ben Roethlisberger. Trubisky got seven starts in 12 appearances with Pittsburgh. Over this stretch, he had a 64% completion rate with eight touchdowns and 10 interceptions, not an ideal ratio. Eventually, Trubisky lost this spot to another ACC product in Kenny Pickett from Pittsburgh. 

Trubisky will be entering his 7th season in the NFL this fall. Currently, as a free agent, he will be looking for a system to prove he was worthy of the 2nd overall pick in his draft class. However, we can expect Mitchell Trubisky to remain a backup who must wait for his opportunity to make a major impact.