The Chicago Bears devoted a significant portion of their 2023 NFL Draft class to building a better supporting cast around starting quarterback Justin Fields. However, undrafted free agent Tyson Bagent could now wind up playing an important role for Chicago in 2023.
Bagent, age 23, was a relative unknown coming out of Shepherd Unversity. While he was a two-time DII All-American and arguably the best DII college football player in the last two years, the 6-foot-3 quarterback wasn’t picked during the 2023 NFL Draft.
- Tyson Bagent college stats: 4,580 passing yards, 41 passing touchdowns, 70% completion, five rushing touchdowns, 8 yards per pass attempt
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After going undrafted, Bagent signed with Chicago as an undrafted free agent. He faced remote odds of making the Bears’ 53-man roster and in a best-case scenario would be the team’s third-string quarterback while living on the roster bubble. Now, all of that has changed.
Currently behind Nathan Peterman and PJ Walker on the depth charter to be Fields’ backup, Bagent impressed Chicago’s coaching staff once again in preseason action. Facing the Indianapolis Colts, he completed 9-of-10 passes for 76 yards and scored his first NFL touchdown.
- Tyson Bagent preseason stats: 113 passing yards, 98.1 quarterback rating, 13-of-15 passes completed
Asked after the game by reporters if Bagent had a legitimate shot at becoming Fields’ backup, beating out Peterman and Walker for the job, head coach Matt Eberflus made it clear there’s an open competition.
“Everything’s open right now. Everybody can look at the roster and see who’s in a competition. Those are all going to be open. If you close your mind off to that, then you might be missing on something. So you have to let it play itself out.”
Matt Eberflus on Tyson Bagent potentially becoming Chicago Bears backup quarterback
It’s extremely rare for an undrafted player to carve out a role this quickly on an NFL team. While Fields is handling all of the first-team reps during Chicago’s practices this summer, Bagent’s play might’ve created an opportunity for himself to receive more second-team reps moving forward.
While the Bears will certainly be hoping Fields stays healthy all year and Bagent doesn’t have to see the field, it’s a credit to the Bears’ scouting department for finding a hidden talent at the DII level and to the coaching staff for helping him develop this quickly.