Getty Quarterback Tyson Bagent of the Chicago Bears.
The Chicago Bears fell short against the New Orleans Saints in Week 9 and there were five big reasons why.
Quarterback Tyson Bagent committed four turnovers, while the Bears handed the football over to the Saints a total of five times on Sunday, November 5, in New Orleans. Wide receiver D.J. Moore sent a message on Bagent and how the team is approaching its rookie signal-caller following the worst performance of his professional career.
DJ Moore on what he tells Tyson Bagent after four turnover game: “You’ve gotta let it soak in for him; you can’t just jump on him right now. We all know we lost the game because of the turnovers. He knows that.”
“You’ve gotta let it soak in for him, you can’t just jump on him right now,” Moore said, per Josh Schrock of NBC Sports Chicago. “We all know we lost the game because of the turnovers. He knows that.”
Tyson Bagent Struggled with Ball Security in 4th Quarter Against Saints
GettyWide receiver D.J. Moore of the Chicago Bears.
Bagent’s turnovers were as untimely as they were unfortunate, as three of them came in the fourth quarter. The Bears’ final four possessions ended with an interception, another interception, a three-and-out punt and finally a fumble.
Bagent finished the afternoon 18-of-30 passing for 220 yards, 2 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. He also rushed the ball 8 times for 70 yards and lost a fumble.
Chicago also committed two more fumbles on the game, one by Moore and the other by offensive lineman Lucas Patrick, though the Bears were able to recover both times.
Despite all those missteps, Chicago still lost the game by only one score — 24-17. Bagent spoke to the media about his costly mistakes during the postgame press conference.
“Really it just all comes down to myself in that last quarter being able to do a better job taking care of the ball,” Bagent said. “Coach talks about it every single day, how important it is to take care of the ball, and I didn’t do a good job of it. So that’s basically just me there in that last quarter.”
Bagent is now responsible for 6 interceptions and 2 lost fumbles in essentially three and a half games played for the Bears, per Pro Football Reference. He has accounted for 5 total touchdowns over that span and has a record of 1-2.
Justin Fields on Brink of Returning to Bears’ Lineup
GettyChicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields.
Bagent’s start against the Saints — the third of his rookie season — may also be his last for the foreseeable future.
Justin Fields has missed each of the last three games due to a dislocated thumb on his throwing hand, which he suffered against the Minnesota Vikings on October 15. He hasn’t taken a snap since, though Fields returned to practice at the end of last week. The third-year starter was wearing a glove, as his grip hasn’t fully returned.
There is a chance that Fields will be ready to go for Chicago’s next contest on Thursday Night Football against the visiting Carolina Panthers. His odds would obviously be better if the Bears were playing on Sunday rather than on a short week, so Bagent may get one more start before Fields can return to game action.
Carolina (1-7) is one of the few teams in the league with a worse record than Chicago (2-7). In fact, if the 2024 NFL Draft started before this weekend’s slate of games, the Panthers would have picked second while the Bears would have picked third.
However, Chicago owns Carolina’s first-round pick next year based on a trade between the teams last offseason. As such, the Bears essentially can’t gain or lose collective ground with their two first-round selections regardless of what happens in the game Thursday night.
Chicago is also more than a long shot to make the postseason, which means the team has no incentive to either rush Fields back or sit him in hopes of dropping a game to one of the worst teams in football.
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DJ Moore Sends Strong Message on Tyson Bagent After 4-Turnover Game