Tyson Bagent named starter for Week 8 vs. Chargers
The Chicago Bears will be sticking with rookie quarterback Tyson Bagent against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 8. Quarterback Justin Fields will begin the week listed as doubtful as he continues to progress from a dislocated thumb suffered in Week 6's loss to the Vikings. Bagent led the Bears to a 30-12 victory in […]
The Chicago Bears will be sticking with rookie quarterback Tyson Bagent against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 8.
Quarterback Justin Fields will begin the week listed as doubtful as he continues to progress from a dislocated thumb suffered in Week 6's loss to the Vikings.
Bagent led the Bears to a 30-12 victory in Week 7 against the Las Vegas Raiders during his first career NFL start. The undrafted rookie will now be slated to start his first NFL road game and primetime game at SoFi Stadium on Sunday Night Football.
As for Fields, his progression throughout the week will still be important to monitor. After the game on Sunday, Bears head coach Matt Eberflus confirmed that Fields is still the team's starter when he's healthy. Fields reportedly struggled with gripping the football and dealt with swelling in his thumb last week that caused by the injury.
On Monday, Eberflus said that Fields is on the right path towards coming back from the injury but will continue to work with trainers throughout the week. Eberflus again stated that the injury will not require surgery nor an injured reserve move going forward.
Bagent completed 21 of his 29 pass attempts for 162 yards and one touchdown in the Week 7 win. Bagent was calm and collected in the pocket, and only suffered one sack during the game. Eberflus was pleased with how Bagent operated in the pocket on Sunday and the presence he was able to show against the pressure.
"He understands the play design, he understands where it's supposed to go and he gets rid of it in a timely fashion," Eberflus said on Monday. "Even when it was off schedule in terms of the pressure, he's athletic enough to be able to evade. So, he's able to do those things and that's his skill set and he did a nice job with it."
The Bears played very conservative with their rookie quarterback in Week 8 by relying heavily on the ground game. An philosophy that could be adjusted this weekend.
"What we liked most about [the win] was that [Bagent had] nine different targets," Eberflus added. "So, we want to definitely continue to do that. Again, you can win a lot of different ways and every week is different. We'll find the way, during the next couple of days, that's going to work this week and keep working at it."
As for more injury updates, offensive lineman Nate Davis will reportedly not be available for Week 8's matchup, but the team will hope to have running back Roschon Johnson back at practice this week once he clears one last hurdle in the protocol. The rookie running back suffered a concussion in Week 5 against the Washington Commanders and has yet to practice since.
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