NEWSLETTER
It has been a while since the Bears had a down-the-depth-chart quarterback option who garnered this much positive attention. But here we are. It’s Tyson Bagent’s world, we’re just living in it this week.
To be clear, this isn’t Justin Fields or Mitchell Trubisky erasure. But those guys were first-round picks who had palpable buzz as soon as they were drafted and sent to Chicago. Nothing gets us going like the new hope a first-round pick brings to our galaxy. But the Bagent story isn’t anything like that. Instead, this is more about the likes of Matt Barkley, Josh McCown, Kyle Orton, and Jim Miller. The Bagent story is more along the lines of a quarterback who was once an afterthought until they began making unexpected noise as a starter. And, hey, who doesn’t like a pleasant surprise at quarterback?
Bears fans haven’t had much to cheer about from the quarterback position over the years. But we have those Josh McCown games in what was otherwise a regrettable run of football during the Marc Trestman era. We also had that time when Jim Miller turned Marcus Robinson into a household name. The Kyle Orton folklore is the stuff of legends now. I could go on. But I won’t. The point I’m trying to drive home is that we’ve seen (and heard) some wild things when it comes to Bears quarterbacks over the years.
But even I couldn’t have seen a Tyson Bagent-Brock Purdy comparison coming. And I wonder if ESPN’s Adam Schefter felt the same when an anonymous Chicago Bears player dropped it on him. Schefty shared it with the world, and now I’m sharing it with you:
MORE: Brock Purdy: From Mr. Irrelevant to 49ers QB1
When I tell you that my jaw dropped when I saw this tweet, imagine it dropping like it was in a cartoon. With the sound effects and all that good stuff. I had cartoon question marks pop up over my head when I saw it. But I also had a good chuckle afterward. It’s like balance in the Force. Or something like that.
Tyson Bagent folklore is growing
If you can squint, then maybe you can make out where it’s coming from when a Bears player shares a Tyson Bagent-Brock Purdy comp on Schefty. Brock Purdy started as a freshman at Iowa State, was the starter throughout his career with the Cyclones, and given the title of Mr. Irrelevant for being the last player selected in the 2022 NFL Draft. Tyson Bagent was starting as a freshman at Shepherd University and put up all sorts of bonkers numbers during his college career. Both players were afterthoughts in their draft classes. And both began their respective careers as QB3s. And now, Bagent hopes to follow in Purdy’s footsteps in going from toiling in relative anonymity to starting for a high-profile NFL franchise.
My mind keeps coming back to the college experience when it comes to the Purdy-Bagent comp. The high volume of collegiate experience is something that might help explain why someone like Purdy has had success at the outset of his career. And it could be something that is aiding Bagent in his journey. It makes me wonder if there is something about having a ton of college reps that makes for a smoother transition into a pro-playing career. However, I’d need to dive in deeper on that end before I feel strongly about whether a causation or correlation thing is happening here. In any case, it certainly has my attention.
Let me be clear with this before we close this out. The Raiders stink. They’re awful. The ineptitude is impressive and almost admirable. And while Tyson Bagent had a game that put him in the NFL’s Rookie of the Week conversation, he also didn’t complete or attempt any deep-ball throws. I’m not sure if the lack of a deep ball is a feature or a bug, but maybe we’ll find out on Sunday Night Football.
So, on the one hand … let’s not get too carried away with this. But on the other hand, I think we can still have fun with the Bagent stuff at this moment. Because if we’re not allowing ourselves to have fun, then why are we even watching football in the first place?
