The Bears GM addresses Tyson Bagent's future amid trade buzz, weighing the young QB's value against potential opportunities elsewhere.
The NFL Combine is upon us, with General Manager Ryan Poles and head coach Ben Johnson in Indianapolis, Indiana, at Lucas Oil Stadium representing the Chicago Bears.
The first position groups to show up will be the defensive linemen and linebackers on Thursday. Next up are tight ends and defensive backs on Friday. The quarterbacks, receivers and running backs are on Saturday.
The offensive linemen will be the last position group to appear at the combine on Sunday.
Poles fielded questions and was first asked about the Ian Cunningham situation. The NFL decided not to award the Bears draft compensation after Cunningham was hired as the next GM of the Atlanta Falcons.
The Bears' GM shared that the decision wasn't final just yet, as he is still waiting for a response from the league.
Then, the GM was asked about the trade rumors surrounding backup quarterback Tyson Bagent. According to John Gambadoro on 98.7 Phoenix, the Arizona Cardinals are interested in Bagent. Bagent still has another year left on his deal, so the Cardinals would need to trade for him.
Bagent has been the Bears' backup quarterback since 2023, when he joined the team after going undrafted in the 2023 NFL Draft. He saw playing time as a rookie after Justin Fields went down with an injury.
Bagent threw for 859 passing yards, three touchdowns and six interceptions in 2023. His playing time took a hit once the team drafted Caleb Williams. He's played in seven total games since then.
Poles sounded torn on the decision to trade Bagent or keep him. He shared that multiple teams have called the Bears about him.
He noted the value of having a player in the organization that has been developed and coached by the Bears, but also that Bagent would have a good chance to play with another team.
"We anticipated someone like Tyson's [Bagent] going to get some, you know, interest," Poles said. "We've gotten a few calls there. Obviously, the tough thing is with you know, what Ben thinks about Tyson, what I think about Tyson, what our locker room thinks about Tyson. That's a really tough decision for us. But, for Tyson as well, I think he would have an opportunity to go and perform for a team and do some really good things. But again, you've got to weigh the short-term and long-term. So, now what's the cost of replacement to get someone like Tyson? We spent a lot of time developing him. Ben spent a lot of time developing him, so you got to replace that as well. So, interesting dynamic that we're going to have to work through."
If Bagent is traded, it would definitely affect the depth the Bears have at quarterback. In 2025, the Bears had Bagent, Williams and Keenum on the team. Keenum was the emergency quarterback last season, but still played a big role as a mentor to Williams.
Without Bagent, the Bears would need to sign another quarterback, with Keenum set to become a free agent.
Finding another quarterback like Bagent could be difficult. The value of a reliable backup quarterback in this league is very significant.