The conversation around Tyrique Stevenson's part during the final play of the Chicago Bears loss to the Washington Commanders took on a life of its own this past week.
There is no question that Stevenson deserved to face some form of punishment for not being ready for the final play of last Sunday's game. But, what has become problematic are the fans and media that think they deserve to be privy to details surrounding how Stevenson would be punished.
That is why some of the frustrations for fans regarding Matt Eberflus' press conferences from last week were misguided. Regardless of what the punishment would be for Stevenson, the Bears were never going to publicly reveal what it was going to be.
Nevertheless, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported on Sunday that Stevenson will indeed not be starting against the Cardinals on Sunday.
#Bears CB Tyrique Stevenson won’t start today vs the #AZCardinals, sources say, a disciplinary action following last week’s Hail Mary. The hope is he learns from this, as teammates and coaches have backed him.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 3, 2024
My story: https://t.co/XJecKQXL0Jhttps://t.co/XJecKQXL0J
Tyrique Stevenson won't start for the Chicago Bears on Sunday.
This is a step toward Eberflus gaining back control over the Bears' locker room. Of course, the easiest way for Eberflus to do that would be to coach the team to a win against the Cardinals on Sunday but there needed to be some form of discipline for Stevenson. Otherwise, Eberflus was at risk of having no control over the locker room in a similar way that Marc Trestman lost control during the second-year of his coaching tenure with the Bears.
Even though Stevenson will be benched to open the game against the Cardinals, the expectation is that he will play. With Jaquan Brisker already ruled out and Kyler Gordon trying to play through a hamstring injury, the Bears will need Stevenson. Despite his mental gaffe against the Commanders last Sunday, Stevenson remains one of the best secondary players for the Bears.