LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) -- Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky walked out of the Los Angeles Coliseum last month wearing the dejection of his team's 4-6 record.
Just as Trubisky understood the expectations for the Bears entering this season, he realized the disappointment that came in falling short. The 25-year-old Trubisky appeared to be carrying the burden of it all.
But in the three games since that Nov. 17 loss, Trubisky has completed 70 percent of his passes and averaged 286.6 passing yards per game. More importantly, the Bears have won all three contests and remained in the playoff picture by improving to 7-6. As they have, Trubisky has appeared to be free of that burden.
"The guys whose careers last over a long period of time, those guys are able to figure out first and foremost what the pressure really is and then second of all how to handle it throughout the course of their career," Bears quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone said. "You have to go through that. I mean, you can prep a guy all you want. This is a great football town, tremendous football town. So, there's expectations.
"More than anything else, it's how you manage the pressure moving forward. It's always going to be there. With Mitchell, you can tell his makeup, it's what he wants. That's why he's so good in critical situations in my opinion. He craves it. He's growing with the process."
Ragone has been Trubisky's quarterbacks coach since he was selected No. 2 overall in 2017. When the Bears transitioned from John Fox to Matt Nagy as their head coach, Ragone was the lone holdover on the offensive coaching staff. His relationship with Trubisky has been important as the Bears worked to develop Trubisky into a franchise quarterback.
"That, you have to experience by going through it," Ragone said. "Hopefully, you can grow into it. I think what you're seeing with him is a kid who came in at 22 and now at 25 is maturing.
"The maturation process is matching the physical process. Hopefully that continues to grow."
No Ro
The Bears officially shut down inside linebacker Roquan Smith on Monday afternoon, when he was placed on season-ending injured reserve after being diagnosed with a torn pectoral.
Smith suffered the injury on the first series of a win against the Cowboys last Thursday. It ended a second NFL season for Smith in which he displayed continued growth -- notably in recent weeks.
The Bears are moving forward with Kevin Pierre-Louis starting in place of Smith, while fellow reserve Nick Kwiatkoski fills in for starter Danny Trevathan (elbow) at the other inside linebacker spot.
The team also took some time to reflect fondly on Smith's performance this season.
"Unbelievable person, unbelievable player," inside linebackers coach Mark DeLeone said. "I think the sky's the limit for him. I'm heartbroken for him because I thought the last four weeks he played his best ball of the season. I feel terrible for him. I know how hard he feels about it. But I also know what's coming.
"He's going to come back, and he's going to be better."
Linear growth
What has gone into the Bears' offensive line improving its play in recent weeks?
There are a number of factors in play. The switch of Cody Whitehair back to center and a commitment to balance on offense have helped, for example.
Even so, offensive line coach Harry Hiestand declined to look at the more detailed reasons behind his unit's better performance.
"Guys just continue to work," Hiestand said. "They prepare hard. The same group's been together for a little bit. I think we're seeing some benefits there. It's the product of a lot of things. Number one, it's their attitude and their effort. When things aren't going good, it's not always easy to keep pushing forward and keep working to get better.
"They've been doing that, and I think we're seeing some of the positives of that."