The Chicago Bears will not have Caleb Williams against the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football, but backup quarterback Tyson Bagent will be available.
Bagent practiced on Saturday and officially cleared the NFL’s mandatory concussion protocol on Sunday. However, he will not step into the starting role on Monday, September 28.
“[Bagent] just passed concussion protocol this morning,” Jay Glazer of FOX Sports reported Sunday morning. “So he will be in tomorrow night. He’ll be the backup quarterback. They couldn’t make him the starter because he wasn’t involved too much in the game plan.”
Bears Give Case Keenum Starting Nod Against Eagles on Monday Night Football
Case Keenum is going to start instead in what will be his first regular-season action since 2023.
The 38 year old has prepared all week for the possibility that neither Williams or Bagent would be available. As it turns out, Keenum will get the nod anyway, even with Bagent back in the fold.
Keenum started two games for the Houston Texans three seasons back, going 1-1. Over the course of his career, Keenum has amassed a record of 30-36 in 80 games played. He has recorded 15,175 yards passing, 79 TDs and 51 INTs.
“He’s got that way about him, he’s got a knack, his teammates gravitate to him,” Bears head coach Ben Johnson said of Keenum earlier in the week, per Chris Emma of The Score. “In a lot of ways, he might be a step slower than when he first entered the league, and yet his mind is going [so] fast, it helps catch him on up. He’s playing as good of football as he probably has his whole career is what he would tell you.”
Caleb Williams Could Miss Between 3-4 Games With Hamstring Injury
Meanwhile, Williams officially has a Grade 2 hamstring strain and will miss between three and four weeks with the injury, according to an update on Sunday.
“This doesn’t mean that Williams, whom the Bears have touted as a quick healer, couldn’t return sooner than that timeline,” Adam Schefter of ESPN reported. “It just means that doctors believe this type of injury normally takes three to four weeks of recovery and that is the doctors’ best estimation of how long it could take Williams to recover.”
Williams suffered the injury during the fourth quarter against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 2.
Bears Get Big Tyson Bagent Update Prior to Eagles Game