Tyson
Bagent, a rookie, gives the Bears their first career victory
CHICAGO - The Chicago Bears won their first game at Soldier
Field in 13 months behind a rookie quarterback and a reserve running back.
To win his first career start for the Bears since Craig Krenzel in 2004, Tyson Bagent, a
23-year-old undrafted free agent, led a 30-12 victory over the Las Vegas
Raiders while filling in for an injured Justin Fields.For the first time since
September 25, 2022, Chicago triumphed at home.
Following Fields' dislocated thumb against the Minnesota Vikings, Bagent, a Division II graduate from Shepherd University who holds the NCAA record for career touchdown passes
(159), prepped all week as the starter.
Editorial Picks Overreactions from
Week 7 are being evaluated, and Baltimore is superior to Buffalo and Washington
needs to switch quarterbacks.
The rookie ran three times for 24 yards, including a 12-yard scramble on a second-and-11 in
the third quarter to keep a drive alive that resulted in a touchdown and a 21-3
lead. The rookie completed 21 of 29 throw attempts for 162 yards and a
touchdown (97.2 passer rating) He also completed 21 of 29 pass attempts.
Chicago's second victory of the year was secured by Bagent's flawless,
effective performance (the Bears were 8-of-13 on third down).
DJ Moore, a wide receiver, stated of Bagent, "He took what they were giving him."
"He remained calm and composed, stayed inside himself, and did nothing
unusual. acted as necessary.
Bagent did not need to shoulder the entire team's burden as part of the Bears' game plan.
Moore led the club with a team-high eight receptions for 54 yards among seven different players.With D'Onta Foreman's season-best 89 yards (5.6 yards per carry) and two
running touchdowns, Chicago produced its second-highest rushing total of the
season (173 yards).
Jaylon Johnson, a cornerback, assisted the Bears' offensive production by recording two
interceptions, including a pick-six of 39 yards in the fourth quarter.
According to coach Matt Eberflus, "that was really the whole thing." We wanted Agent to
play with superb rhythm, timing, and protection. We also wanted him to avoid
letting Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby ruin the game. We have all of those in
place to succeed. And distribute the ball to skill guys. When you can run the
ball like we did, they need to come up the line of scrimmage and be in some
excellent offensively favorable pass situations. Overall, everyone in the group
put in a really excellent effort.
With 19 touches on Sunday, his most with Chicago, Foreman became the fifth Bears player in the past 60 seasons to score twice on the ground and once in the air in the same
game.Foreman, who was absent Weeks 2 through 5, has been given a larger role over the last two weeks thanks to injuries to Chicago's backfield, including Roschon Johnson
(concussion) and Khalil Herbert (ankle).
He was aware that his chance would eventually
arrive. You know, he wanted to perform better last week, and today he did.
Therefore, I believe he simply needs to start stacking performances while
maintaining his previous positive, can-do mentality.
Eberflus stated
that the group would assess Fields' damaged thumb on Monday to determine its
status. Eberflus stated that "he will see the
doctors." I am aware of his high spirits. I am confident that he did an
outstanding job working with Tyson on the sidelines today, speaking with him
prior to the game, and going through the first 15 plays in full. But on Monday,
we'll learn more about his condition, his location, and everything else.
Bagent commended Fields for his assistance during the week's preparation for the Raiders. The
youngster acknowledged that he was anxious before the game, but then he
marveled at the "off the chain" home crowd when he walked the field.
When asked how many friends and family members were present for the victory, Bagent made a joke
about how this week's salary will probably look different. His performance on
Sunday was so significant that Eberflus gave him the game ball and made him the
eighth quarterback since 1970 to win in his first start for the Bears.
"I've got a
bunch of friends, a bunch of family that understand how big this was, just
really in life," Bagent stated.