The Chicago Bears have been nothing short of a disaster this season, with multiple firings from coaching positions for unknown reasons. Seemingly every move that General Manager Ryan Poles makes turns into a disaster, the Bears are now facing a “Quarterback Crisis” at the position due to rookie Tyson Bagent.
The Bears are off to a pitiful 2-7 start to the 2023-2024 NFL season. Just about everyone on the Bears roster could have the finger pointed at them for their efforts, but most importantly at the quarterback position, which for nearly ten years the Bears have struggled to find an elusive starting quarterback to get the job done from week to week.
Justin Fields was the opening day starting quarterback for the Bears. He performed well for those first six weeks before a thumb injury, which put him on the bench in week seven against the Las Vegas Raiders. This opened the stage for rookie division two quarterback Tyson Bagent to start week seven, and the Bears picked up a crucial 30-12 win against the Raiders. Bagent’s seemingly perfect performance has divided Bears fans since Bagent appeared to perform better than Fields.
On the other hand, Bagent’s success from his first NFL game start has seemed to disappear over his last two starts. With an 0-2 record, Bagent has had a problem with turnovers and his ability to throw the ball deep down field. This has presented a problem for the Bears, as they are now faced with choosing a starter to finish out the season as Fields comes back for week ten. However, Fields has his own issues at the position as well, and skeptics are beginning to think the Bears need to move on from him.
According to The Guardian, “Field’s mechanics border on the lackadaisical these days. He moves with a jagged, arhythmic quality that can be hard for teammates to read and clashes with the flow of the offense around him.”
With the Bears currently holding onto the second and third draft picks in next year’s rookie draft, the Bears are stuck with a tough decision whether or not to start over by drafting another quarterback. Although Fields has shown promise this season, there are other very talented quarterbacks in the next draft class, which opens up opportunities for the Bears to find a potential rookie star from the draft.
According to CBS,” They are (The Bears) off to such a bad start in 2023 that their own first-rounder could end up being near the top, if not No. 1 overall, again. In a 2024 draft class projected to be QB-rich, featuring top prospects like Caleb Williams and Drake Maye, it’s conceivable they will have a clear path to resetting at QB entirely.”
As of now, the Bears have made it clear that for the rest of the season Fields will be the starting quarterback, since head coach, Matt Eberflus, still has faith that Fields can get the job done until the end of the season.
According to NBC Sports Chicago, Eberflus said, ”Justin is our starting quarterback. Tyson’s the backup, he came in and did a nice job.”
The Bears will be faced with many questions about coaching and executive positions at the end of the season. With many projecting the Bears with an 8-8 record this season, something is not working with their current system. Due to this, the Bears now facing an issue with the quarterback position, which is arguably the most important on the field, changes are going to have to happen for them to be successful.