FEBRUARY 26: The Bears will need “a significant package of picks and/or players” to move Bagent, per Essentially Sports’ Tony Pauline. It is hard to imagine a team getting that aggressive on such an unproven passer, but the renaissance of quarterback reclamation projects could encourage one to acquire Bagent and his cheap contract. He is only owed $8.5MM over the next two years. His $4MM salary in 2026 is set to guarantee in March, per OverTheCap, but a team acquiring him would be planning to pay that money either way.
FEBRUARY 24: Shortly before he began his third NFL season in 2025, backup quarterback Tyson Bagent inked a two-year, $10MM extension with the Bears. The deal keeps Bagent under wraps through 2027, but he may finish it in another uniform. General manager Ryan Poles revealed Tuesday that teams have inquired about Bagent. Poles wouldn’t rule out trading the 25-year-old, Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Bagent, who joined the Bears as an undrafted free agent from Division II Shepherd in 2023, backed up Justin Fields as a rookie. But Bagent still made five appearances and four starts, during which he completed 65.7% of throws for 859 yards (6.0 per attempt), three touchdowns, six interceptions and a 71.4 passer rating. Bagent has barely seen any regular-season action since then.
The Bears cut the cord on the failed Fields experiment when they traded him to the Steelers in March 2024. Although the Bears won seven games during the Fields/Bagent season, they had already secured the No. 1 pick in the draft thanks to a March 2023 blockbuster with the Panthers.
A month after the Bears dumped Fields, they used the top selection in 2024 on former USC Heisman Trophy-winning QB Caleb Williams. As expected, Williams was the Bears’ starter from Day 1. He has not missed a game two years later.
While Williams’ career got off to a somewhat rocky start during a 5-12 rookie year, he and the Bears made enormous strides in an NFC North-winning campaign in 2025. The Bears went on to win their wild-card matchup against the hated Packers, but their season ended a week later with an overtime loss to the Rams in the divisional round.
With Williams now looking like the long-awaited answer under center for the Bears, Bagent does not have a real path to playing time in Chicago. The 6-foot-3, 212-pounder has attempted just six passes in seven appearances since Williams came to town, but head coach Ben Johnson regards his backup as a starting-caliber QB.
“I do think there is a lot of merit to having a strong No. 2 quarterback, which he certainly fits that bill,” Johnson said Tuesday (via Finley). “I’m of the mind that he’s probably one of the best 32 in the NFL. His preseason tape over the last few years has probably confirmed that, in my opinion. But if I took myself out of the equation, I want what’s best for him. If he would like an opportunity to start, I certainly hope he can get that somewhere.”
That’s a glowing endorsement from Johnson, one of the league’s brightest offensive minds. If at least one other team agrees with Johnson’s assessment, it could put Poles in position to sell high on Bagent this offseason.
Lol what a bunch of bs
What’s Johnson going to say? “Nah, Bagent is barely a serviceable backup. I wouldn’t give up a pick for him.”
I was thinking same thing.
He’s way better than a serviceable backup. I’d play him over Tua, Kyler, Fields, anyone Pitt wheelchairs out there, and at least 5 others off the top of my head.
I would also…comment was meant about what Johnson said about him.
Not worth it trading him for a day three pick. But if someone wants to offer a 3rd or a 4th have at it!
A 4th is a day three pick.
The Bears should just focus on improving the defense because what will happen here is they’ll trade Bagent, Williams will gets injured and then they’ll get the brilliant idea to cycle back to Mike Glennon…lol.
Tyson secret Bagent man. I would not trade him at all. I do believe he is a secret as a backup. hopefully someday he’ll get a chance as a starter and succeed like I think he can.
Interesting story. Where could he even go and for how much? ….
I hope the Bears keep him, but, that said, I believe he would make an excellent starting qb somewhere.
This is insanity.
He hasn’t even put up mediocre numbers as a starter. They’re just plain bad.
Three touchdowns to six interceptions in the only year he got major playing time, and they want a significant package?
Maybe because they don’t want to trade him? 🤷🏼♂️🤷🏼♂️
Bagent is Kyle Orton 2.0. With some experience, he could develop into a decent game manager. He’s always appeared comfortable sitting in the pocket. He’s decisive on his progressions. Not much of an improvisor, but it’s possible that skill hasn’t had the opportunity to emerge. Not gonna throw much downfield with authority. Could he end up being a credible starter? Sure, why not. On the right team. But it has to be a team that is all about the defense, plus have a decent offensive line. But put Bagent on a team with a mediocre offensive line, perhaps only a decent WR1, and a defense with some noticeable holes, and Bagent is going to be the kind of QB where once the team falls behind by 14 in the first half, the fans know the game it out of reach.
I like having him on the Bears as QB2. If Williams needs to sit for a couple games, the team won’t nosedive with Bagent in relief. If Williams tears an ACL in the second game of the season, Bagent looks a lot less appealing as a remedy for the long haul.
It all depends on what is offered and what the kid wants to do. If he wants a chance to start he probably won’t get it here. The kid is cool as the other side of the pillow and in the right situation could flourish. He can surely be as good as Brock Purdy. If he has the right team around him he’d be fine. He can always wait the two years and it will still likely be there. If Johnson thinks he can get somebody else then by all means move him. The Bears need picks. Everybody needs picks. Everything should be on the table for them right now. Cool thing about it is they don’t have to do anything. It’s just fine the way it is.
I mostly agree, but can his body physically hold up if he ever has to start ten or more games? We will see if he ever becomes a starter somewhere.
Purdy has been injured and also recklessly runs with the ball but has earned his contract. If Tyson could duplicate Purdy’s play while not running, he could succeed somewhere, or with the Bears.
He’s probably just trying to build a good trade market for him, since the demand outweighs the quality for free agent quarterbacks & first round quarterbacks this year. Back in 1998, Jacksonville got the eighth pick in the draft, which they used on running back Fred Taylor, by convincing people that backup quarterback Rob Johnson would’ve been the third quarterback off the board that year, after Peyton Manning & Ryan Leaf. We might see this sort of thing happen more than once this year (see also: Tanner McKee).