Bears sign QB Tyson Bagent: Caleb Williams backup lands two-year deal, per report
Bagent spent the first two years of his NFL career with the Bears and made four starts
By
Carter Bahns
•
1 min read
The Chicago Bears sorted out their backup quarterback situation Wednesday, signing Tyson Bagent to a two-year, $10 million contract as the top option behind starter Caleb Williams. ESPN's Tom Pelissero confirmed the signing after CHGO Bears was first to report the move. Bagent's deal, which runs through the 2027 season, can reach $16 million with its incentive structure.
The Bears did not have to look far for their top backup. Bagent spent the last two seasons in Chicago and played a total of nine games, including four starts in 2023.
Bagent's signing comes on the heels of a tremendous preseason showing in which he guided the Bears to a 38-0 rout of the Buffalo Bills. Taking the majority of the quarterback reps after Williams started the game, Bagent led the squad with 196 passing yards and a touchdown on 13-of-22 passing. He also ran once for nine yards. Bagent accumulated a team-high 103 yards in the preseason-opening tie with the Miami Dolphins, too.
"If everything goes well, this is it," Bagent said of the preseason. "I'll be watching a lot of football this year. 1-8 will go out there and do his thing. So this means the world to me. This is my life's work being put into action right here in front of everybody. It means a lot, but I'm really just trying to continue to get better myself day in and day out, bank as many reps as possible and be as ready as I possibly can be for the long season that's coming."
This season is Bagent's third in the league after he joined the Bears in 2023 as an undrafted free agent. He hails from Shepherd, a Division II program in West Virginia, and was one of the best players in the nation at that level as a two-time first-team DII All-American. He won the Harlon Hill Trophy in 2021, which is the DII equivalent of the Heisman Trophy.
The hope, of course, is that Bagent only sees limited action at the end of blowout victories with the Bears. If Williams takes his anticipated step forward as Chicago's second-year starter, Bagent would be unlikely to play much more than he did last year, when he threw and completed just two passes. Williams was sharp in his latest preseason effort and is on an upward trajectory, taking "two steps forward, one step back" in his first camp under new coach Ben Johnson.
