Chicago Bears News: Tyson Bagent expected to start against Saints

Despite there being a sense that starting quarterback Justin Fields would return for the Chicago Bears game against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, rookie quarterback Tyson Bagent is expected to make his third consecutive start for the team.

Last week, there was a belief that Fields was prepping for a return to action against the Saints but Bears’ head coach Matt Eberflus seemingly ruled that out on Monday.

When speaking with Waddle and Silvy on ESPN 1000 on Monday afternoon, Eberflus gave the indication that Bagent would be the starting quarterback on Sunday.

Tyson Bagent was named the Chicago Bears’ starting quarterback for their Week 9 game against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday afternoon.

Sunday’s night loss against the Chargers represented the first opportunity for Bears fans to see the limitations that Bagent has as a quarterback. Bagent struggled on passes over 10 yards while throwing 2 interceptions.

The Bears only managed to put up 13 points against a Chargers’ pass defense that was the worst in the league entering play on Sunday. Despite the struggle that the Bears’ offense had on Sunday night, there were clear signs the team’s coaching staff was happy to have Bagent inserted as the starting quarterback. NBC’s Sunday Night Football color analyst, Chris Collinsworth, made several comments throughout the broadcast that made it clear that the Bears’ coaching staff preferred Bagent’s style over Fields’.

Considering that the Bears also have the Thursday night game against the Carolina Panthers next week, there would seem to be a strong chance that Fields does not return until the team’s Week 11 game against the Detroit Lions.

Regardless, the longer that Fields is sidelined with his dislocated thumb injury, the more likely it is that the team will be moving in a different direction at the quarterback position after this season. No, it would seem that Bagent won’t be the answer at the quarterback position either as the next franchise quarterback in the making will likely arrive via the 2024 NFL Draft.