The focus of the Chicago Bears offseason was doing everything possible to put quarterback Caleb Williams on the right track. By all accounts they got it done, from hiring better coaching to upgrading the offensive line to adding more skill position talent around him.
On Wednesday, another move was made to support Williams. As first reported by Mark Carman of CHGO Sports and confirmed by multiple national reporters, the Bears have signed quarterback Tyson Bagent to a two-year, $10 million contract extension to keep him in the fold through 2027.
According to Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL Media, Bagent's new deal can be worth up to $16 million with incentives.
Bagent was signed by the Bears as an undrafted free agent out of Division II Shepherd University in 2023. He started four games as a rookie, then he barely played as Williams' backup last year.
Bagent has been in a battle with Case Keenum to be Williams' backup during the preseason, but head coach Ben Johnson and general manager Ryan Poles have both taken opportunities to praise him.
“Man, he’s been phenomenal,” Johnson said earlier this month. “I mean, he’s smart as a whip. Appreciate the seriousness and intent that he brings every time he walks into a room. Meeting room, walk-through, it doesn’t matter. He’s locked in. He’s focused. I think his teammates feel that from him. Love the fact (that) he’ll throw the ball and he keeps working through his progressions just so it goes home with exactly where everyone’s going to be in case he had to move on. I think he’s taken this seriously. He’s preparing the right way. And I couldn’t be more thrilled that he’s here with us.”
In the second preseason game against the Buffalo Bills, Bagent all but locked up the backup job by going 13-for-22 for 196 yards and a touchdown along with a 103.6 passer rating. He led four scoring drives, with three ending in touchdowns.
Tyson Bagent adds another measure of multi-year stability around Caleb Williams
While Williams clearly would've benefitted from having a veteran backup during his rookie season, and Keenum would naturally fill that void, Bagent has practically become that guy now.
During the FOX broadcast of the Bills' game, Poles said, "Tyson's a stud" and "There isn’t a harder worker on this football team than Tyson Bagent. You can see that with his background coming from Shepherd, he always kind of had an underdog vibe to him. And the dude’s just gritty, and he’s tough and he continues to work and get better every single year.”
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Pending the decision to pick up Williams' fifth-year option down the road, Bagent is now under contract for the same time span as the Bears' starting quarterback. That's surely not a coincidence, as Bagent also gets some multi-year stability and a nice pay raise he has earned.