Mitch Trubisky knows what it is like to return to a place that is meaningful.
In the spring, he went back to college. The quarterback, 29, had one class left to get his degree at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
“I just wanted to finish it,” Trubisky told The Buffalo News. “I don’t know, ever since I had my son, I really just wanted to tell him I was a college graduate someday. But I know he’s only 2 – I actually took my final exam on his second birthday. So, it was a busy day, but it was fun.”
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Bills quarterback Mitch Trubisky, left, walks off the field with General Manager Brandon Beane after an OTA practice on June 4.
After finishing his physiology exam, he was officially a graduate and back to work. Just a couple of months earlier, he learned he would be returning to the Buffalo Bills, where he previously spent the 2021 season. Trubisky was thrilled to be back.
“It’s been awesome,” Trubisky said. “I mean, I was gone for two years, but it feels like it really flew by. But the fact that they wanted me back here and it just feels like coming back home. I feel really comfortable.”
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Trubisky, who was born and raised in Mentor, Ohio, spent the last two seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, during which he started seven games and played in 12. The former No. 2 overall pick of the Chicago Bears has seen it all in his NFL career.
Bills quarterbacks coach Ronald Curry thinks that rocky path has benefited Trubisky.
“The best thing about him is he’s been high, and he’s been low, and he doesn’t make excuses about the rocky path he’s had, and I think he’s learned that the best teaching is learning from your mistakes,” Curry said. “And I feel like he’s at a point in his career, he’s learned how to move on (from adversity).”
In returning to Buffalo, Trubisky will once again serve as Josh Allen’s backup. It is a role he relishes.
In his last stint with Buffalo, Trubisky also spent ample time preparing the Bills defense for the opposing quarterback it would face each week. Trubisky took his scouting work very seriously, taking pride in strong performances by the defense, knowing he had a hand in that preparation.
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His role will be similar this go-round, but some of the supporting cast has changed.
Trubisky just missed overlapping with now offensive coordinator Joe Brady. Brady came to the Bills in 2022 as a quarterbacks coach, before working his way up. Curry is new to the Bills. Quarterback Shane Buechele, who spent last season on the Bills practice squad, is also new to Trubisky. It has been “a blast” to work with Buechele, Trubisky said.
There has been a massive overhaul of the receiving corps. Trubisky is excited to reunite with veteran Mack Hollins, whom he played with in college. But outside Hollins, it is all new faces. None of the 13 wide receivers currently on the roster were with the Bills in 2021.
“It’s a different team than it was last time I was here, and that’s really exciting,” Trubisky said. “But loving being with this offense. Been learning a lot from these guys and these coaches, and being around the young guys just trying to share as much wisdom as I can, talking with the receivers, running backs and tight ends.
“But I feel really comfortable. Like I said, it feels like home, and I’m just excited about continuing this process.”
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Bills quarterback Mitch Trubisky is greeted on his leadoff home run by Spencer Brown during the Micah Hyde Charity Softball Game at Sahlen Field on May 19.
The hope for the Bills, of course, is that Trubisky only takes the field in blowout wins. Still, there’s trust from the Bills in the veteran backup quarterback if anything else were to come up.
“I think he’s a great vet. He’s smart. He has good FBI (football intelligence). The ball is coming out of his hands quickly, and he’s making good decisions,” Curry said. “He’s a good veteran presence in the room and he has a similar skill set to Josh. Josh is 1 of 1, but (Trubisky) can operate in the system like Josh does because he’s mobile, he throws a good ball, he’s accurate, for the most part, and he trusts what he sees.”