With the rookie sensation sidelined by a hamstring strain, Chicago turns to their resilient backup to navigate a high-stakes stretch against the Eagles and Jets.
The Chicago Bears left Sunday's game with more than just a 9-3 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
Late in the fourth quarter, the Bears were trying to mount a scoring drive, and Caleb Williams was leading the charge.
Unfortunately, Williams was injured after a loss in the backfield. He was seen screaming in pain, holding his leg, and was escorted off the field on the medical cart.
Bears fans feared the worst with the injury.
Backup quarterback Tyson Bagent finished out the game, and the team actually had a chance to win it late in the fourth quarter. Bagent marched the offense to the Vikings' 12-yard line, and the Bears just needed a touchdown to win.
However, Bagent was sacked and the Bears lost as a result.
Still, Bagent was very efficient. He threw for 54 passing yards and went 5-of-9 on completions.
It made sense to think that Williams had suffered a significant injury based on his reaction and the fact that he was holding his leg. Luckily, it sounds like he avoided something serious.
The Ringer's Tom Pelissero reported that the injury is minor and that the team isn't even ruling him out for Week 3's game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Head coach Ben Johnson later spoke about the injury, noting that Williams is week-to-week with a hamstring issue. So, it seems that at least there's a chance Williams could miss just one or two games, which is a much better outcome than people thought possible.
Regardless of whether Williams plays or not, the Bears' next two opponents aren't going to be cake walks. They face the Eagles in Week 3, and then the New York Jets, who just took the Green Bay Packers to overtime and have exceeded expectations so far.
The good thing for the Bears is that they have a proven backup in Tyson Bagent. Bears fans are about to see why the franchise has insisted on keeping him around all these years.
Bagent was an undrafted free agent in 2023 after playing college football at Shepherd University, which competes at the Division II level. He had an incredible career and was invited to attend the NFL Combine and Senior Bowl, which not many Division II players are invited to.
He was signed by the Bears and didn't beat out Justin Fields for the starting job, but fans saw just how valuable he was early on.
Fields went down with an injury, and Bagent was thrust into the starting role for the next four games. Bagent led the Bears to a 2-2 record and threw for 776 passing yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions.
His stat line wasn't very impressive, but he did enough to help the team win until Fields came back and could play again.
That was many years ago, before the Bears had Johnson as the head coach. At that time, Bagent learned Matt Eberflus' offense. Now, Bagent has had a couple of years in Johnson's system, which we know is way more quarterback-friendly.
We saw the fruits of that labor on Sunday. Bagent came in and ran the offense well enough to put the team in a position to score the go-ahead touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
For however long the Bears need Bagent, we are going to see why they paid him that two-year, $10 million extension in the offseason.
It's unfortunate that Williams got injured and that Bagent has to be forced into a starting role with little time to prepare, but this is why having one of the best backup quarterbacks in the NFL is so valuable.
Bagent has proven before that he can handle this. Now, he's in a much better situation at the Bears compared to how things were when he first got here in 2023.
Bears fans shouldn't have to worry too much about Bagent. He's built for these kinds of moments.
Even if it's for two games at the most, Bagent is the right man for the job.
