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Bears OC Dowell Loggains Sees The Talent Of Rookie QB Mitchell Trubisky

By Chris Emma—

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. (CBS) – Nothing has surprised Bears offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains when it comes to rookie quarterback Mitchell Trubisky, and that's the way it should be.

After all, Loggains was a part of the Bears' brass that evaluated Trubisky extensively before they moved up to the second overall pick to select him. He saw the potential in place and what the 22-year-old Trubisky could become.

Now that Trubisky is developing in camp, everything is going as expected. He has a big, accurate arm and is adjusting to the rest of the game.

"The skill set is why we drafted him," Loggains said Friday at Olivet Nazarene. "The biggest area has been just understanding the offense, understanding what NFL defenses look like, to start to able to read coverages, because it's a lot. It's a lot for a guy who has never taken a snap in pads under center to be able to come in here. (Defensive coordinator Vic) Fangio does a great job and runs more coverages than anyone in the NFL. So, to see him get exposure to all that and be able to get as many reps as he's gotten has been tremendous.

"Mitch is a thrower. He's really accurate. I think it's the short throws, you really see those things -- putting the ball here compared to there. It's huge, it's critical. And obviously, he does throw a really good deep ball. … But sometimes, it's what type ball you throw. Is it a level-two flat ball? Is it the level-three up-and-over ball? I think he has a good feel for choosing which ball to throw."

The most notable hiccup to this early point for Trubisky has been handling snaps under center. He fumbled three during practice last Saturday, the Bears' first day in full pads and running full speed. Those moments exposed a quarterback still early into his development process.

Trubisky's greatest challenge during training camp and moving into the regular season will be with how he reads defenses. As Loggains knows, Fangio won't make it easy in practice. Adding to that, the Bears have a group in the secondary that's playing sound assignment football.

Unlike during his days at North Carolina, Trubisky is making more detailed pre-snap reads and learning to diagnose a defense. That's a major task before the snap even comes. Then he must adjust to what's flying at him full speed.

Given that Mike Glennon is set as the Bears' starting quarterback and Mark Sanchez is the backup, Trubisky will get all the time he needs to be ready for regular-season action – whenever that time should come. And the preseason will offer an interesting evaluation of how Trubisky's growth is going.

"We judge these guys on who can get us in the end zone," Loggains said. "It's really the job of the quarterback. It doesn't matter how it looks, you've just got to score points. That's his job, so getting out there and now you're dealing with the shot clock, making sure that we're getting lined up right."

Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago's sports scene and more for CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670 and like his Facebook page.

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