Chicago Bears veteran players have called for Tyson Bagent to start ahead of No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams amid the NFC North franchise’s struggles.
On Sunday, Williams and the Bears offense floundered and fell 19-3 to the New England Patriots at Soldier Field. It was a dispiriting defeat, with Williams – the top pick in the 2024 NFL Draft – completing 16 of 30 passes for just 120 yards while fellow rookie Drake Maye threw a touchdown and threw for 184 yards for the Pats.
Williams’ stats are plummeting with each passing week. He is completing roughly 60 percent of his passes while averaging 6.1 yards per attempt behind a porous, makeshift offensive line.
- Aaron Rodgers sends timely reminder to New York Jets with passionate Caleb Williams defense
- NFL analyst shares Deion Sanders theory as Dallas Cowboys weigh up change
As a result of the dysfunctional offense struggling, Bears head coach Matt Eberflus decided to fire offensive coordinator Shane Waldron. The offense will now be handed over to passing game coordinator Thomas Brown, but some players were reportedly looking for Bagent to return to the fold at the expense of Williams.
With the Bears slumping to a three-game losing streak in which Williams has not thrown a touchdown, a group of anonymous veterans approached Eberflus and general manager Ryan Poles to make the change at offensive coordinator. The group also wanted Williams benched for backup Bagent, condemning him to the same fate as fellow No. 1 pick Bryce Young, who was benched by the Carolina Panthers before returning to the fold due to Andy Dalton’s injury.
Last season, undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent went 2-2 in relief of Justin Fields under center for the Bears. He threw three touchdowns with six interceptions.
Follow us on Xfor the best and latest in sports news
Tyson Bagent is the backup behind Caleb Williams in Chicago (
AP)
However, speculation surrounding who was in the group of Bears players that approached Eberflus led some fans to suggest it could be receiver DJ Moore. The receiver’s body language has been poor for much of the campaign, with the Bears struggling with immense expectations heading into the 2024 season.
In 2023, Moore tallied 34 catches for 387 yards with two touchdowns in 7 games with Bagent. In 2024 through 10 games with rookie Williams, Moore has caught just 40 passes for 398 yards and three touchdowns – so he perhaps preferred playing for the second-year signal-caller.
It has not been the rookie season Williams dreamed of. Back in April, after the Bears made Williams the first overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, Chicago added punter Tory Taylor with the No. 122 pick. The former Iowa punter received a congratulatory text from his new quarterback, which read: “Hey, you’re not going to punt too much here.”
Through 10 weeks, Williams has totaled 2,021 offensive yards while Taylor has punted 2,153 yards – so it hasn’t gone to plan. The 4-5 Bears are next in action at home to the 6-3 Green Bay Packers in an NFC North showdown on Sunday, Nov. 17.
Leave a Reply