Sunday afternoon was a monumental day for Tyson Bagent and the Chicago Bears. A former Division II quarterback for the Shepherd Rams, the rookie undrafted free agent made his first NFL start in the absence of Justin Fields.
And for the most part, Bagent did his job! He didn’t jump off the page per se, but he got the ball out quickly, threw over 100 yards, and generally didn’t let Maxx Crosby ruin Chicago’s game plan as its ground offense took over the proceedings. With the one-win Bears now fighting for their season basically every week, that’s all they need for the time being — a game manager who doesn’t lose the game. But a late first-half sequence demonstrated why there’s probably a ceiling on Bagent’s NFL future.
As Chicago looked to add to a 14-3 lead on the final play, it subbed Bagent out for Nathan Peterman on a Hail Mary attempt. Why?
Because Bagent’s arm probably isn’t strong enough to launch a ball that deep and that high. But it’s still Nathan Peterman — owner of an atrocious career 8.1 interception percentage — so you can guess how the Hail Mary went:
Peterman pic.twitter.com/PFYlOpmrNU
— ok man (@sportsguy839303) October 22, 2023
None of this is to diminish how well Bagent has played relative to expectations. Once again, he’s a Division II quarterback starting his first professional football game against some of the finest athletes in the world. But if he can’t throw a Hail Mary or, you know, put some spice on his passes, it’s pretty evident his career ceiling is more of a backup than someone who’s going to change a franchise.
No one should ever be substituting you for Nathan Peterman in any respect if you’re good enough to be a full-time starter.