Bagent back at Halas Hall but doesn’t practice, leaving Bears QB plans for Week 3 up in the air
Caleb Williams (hamstring) and Tyson Bagent (concussion) sat out practice again Friday at Halas Hall. The top two quarterbacks on the Chicago Bears depth chart remain in question ahead of a Monday night matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles at Soldier Field.
In what was perhaps a small victory, Bagent was back in the building for team meetings Friday, although he did not practice.
Bagent suffered a concussion in last week’s 9-3 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, not long after starter Caleb Williams exited with a hamstring injury. When the team returned to the practice field Wednesday, Bagent was not in the building.
On Friday, offensive coordinator Press Taylor confirmed that Bagent was present for team meetings. That would indicate Bagent is moving along in the NFL’s five-step concussion protocol, but it doesn’t necessarily mean he will be cleared ahead of Monday’s game.
NFL players cannot return to game action after a concussion if they have not been cleared by an independent neurological consultant for full football activity involving contact. The Bears do have the benefit of a long week with a Monday game, and they will hold one more practice Saturday.
“(It) helps the process of the protocol, the extra day there as well to get him back healthy,” Taylor said.
Quarterbacks coach J.T. Barrett said Bagent has been in the loop with the game plan this week.
“He’s definitely involved,” Barrett said. “He’s got the base game plan. (We’ve) talked through that. Different notes that we want to take in meetings today.”
In the midst of some major uncertainty at the position this week, third-string quarterback Case Keenum took the starter reps when the team returned to practice Wednesday. On Friday, Keenum and practice squad quarterback Miller Moss were the only quarterbacks available at practice.
Coach Ben Johnson said earlier in the week that the team had no plans to sign another quarterback ahead of Monday. Johnson hasn’t ruled Williams out, but it seems unlikely that the Bears would want to rush their franchise QB back after what looked to be a pretty concerning injury last week.
“It’s one of those things, I know he’s an antsy individual,” Johnson said. “He’s a competitor. He wants to be out there on the grass going full speed. So it is a little bit more challenging to hold a guy back like that. But if you could build a player, that’s what you’d want him to be like.”
Johnson noted earlier in the week that Williams has recovered from injuries “a lot faster than what people can anticipate” in the past.
Johnson might have been referencing a hamstring injury Williams suffered during his Heisman Trophy season at USC in 2022. Williams injured his left hamstring in the Pac-12 championship game loss to Utah that year, but he still returned to play in the Cotton Bowl a month later.
Williams’ current injury is in his right hamstring, but he does have past experience with this specific injury. He has never missed a start due to injury in his college or pro career.
With Williams and Bagent sidelined, there’s a real chance Keenum could start on Monday night. Keenum, 38, hasn’t appeared in a regular-season game since 2023 with the Houston Texans.
The Bears signed Keenum ahead of the 2025 season to be a veteran mentor to Williams and Bagent, and they brought him back on a two-year contract in March.
“The beauty of it is, all three of the quarterbacks — Case, Caleb and Tyson — have all been here since day one,” Taylor said. “A lot of these skill guys, too, that we’ve had, they’re very familiar with all these guys. We mix and match throughout training camp, throughout (the) spring.”
Keenum has appeared in 80 regular-season games in his career, making 66 starts. If Williams and Bagent are unavailable Monday, the Bears likely would flex Moss up to the active roster from the practice squad.
Other injury news
Besides the quarterback situation, the Bears saw some positive injury news with running back Kyle Monangai returning to practice despite a knee injury. Monangai was listed as a non-participant on the team’s estimated injury report Thursday.
In addition to Bagent and Williams, kicker Cairo Santos (right hip) did not participate in practice Friday, and veteran guard Joe Thuney was given an extra day of rest. The Bears do not have a second kicker on the active roster or the practice squad.
Cornerback Tyrique Stevenson (hamstring) was a limited participant Friday. Linebacker Noah Sewell (Achilles tendon) and defensive end Shemar Turner (knee), who are both still on the physically unable to perform list, were limited participants as well.