Bear Digest

Bears Turn Tyson Bagent Loose Against Defense for Mobile QB Look

Tyson Bagent is no Jayden Daniels but the Bears are using their backup QB with the scout team as a

Gene Chamberlain

Tyson Bagent is the Bears' version of Jayden Daniels or Marcus Mariota in practices this week.
Tyson Bagent is the Bears' version of Jayden Daniels or Marcus Mariota in practices this week. / Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images
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Tyson Bagent has become "Jayden Mariota."

Whether that's enough to help prepare the Bears defense for a Commanders quarterback who becomes the extra ball carrier in the backfield isn't known, but at least he's fairly mobile.

Jayden Daniels' status for Sunday's Washington Commanders game against the Bears is in doubt due to a ribs injury but the Bears need to be ready either way for a quarterback who can run. Marcus Mariota ran 11 times last week while replacing Daniels after the injury, and the running quarterback look for the Bears defense is coming from Bagent on the scout team. It's more than just scrambling, as the Kliff Kingsbury/Commanders offense relies extensively on RPO or planned runs.

"We have guys that are going to do that, but we feel Bagent is really athletic, he's able to operate that (offensive look)," Bears coach Matt Eberflus said. "He's operated that type of offense before. I think he’s going to do a wonderful job that way."

Bagent did run for 109 yards on 23 runs last year in his stint replacing injured Justin Fields.

The Bears have yet to be burned this year much by running quarterbacks, anyway.

They have given up only two first downs to scrambles on the year, according to NFLGSIS.com statistics.

In all, they've allowed 78 yards on 14 QB runs, including nine scrambles for 58 yards.

Obviously they'd rather face Mariota because of Daniels' great speed and elusiveness but Mariota, who turns 31 next week, knows what he's doing after 74 career starts and 92 games. He showed something in a 40-7 win over Carolina last week that is hard to replace and it's something Daniels lacks.

"The experience factor," Eberflus said. "I thought he did a really nice job if you look at his rating last week (132.8).

"Efficient, effective during the course of the whole game–he was pretty much in the whole game. You (media) guys saw the score. He did an outstanding job."

Daniels hasn't practiced this week and is considered week to week. Either way, the Bears expect the Commanders offense to try most of the same things it normally would.

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"It's a similar offense when you watch the offenses, different types of players in terms of who they are quarterback-wise," Eberflus said. "Again, our plan will be our plan. We'll adjust, we'll have contingency plans for who's in there but we're going to stick with what we're doing."

The Bears operate a defense highly reliant on zone pass coverage and, in theory, it's easier to defend a scrambler out of a zone. When they used a very similar scheme under Lovie Smith and Rod Marinelli, they usually had few problems with scrambling QBs. They were one of the few teams able to keep Michael Vick bottled up and he lost all five starts against them. He ran for a 5.7 yard average against them, 34 of his yards coming on one run for the Eagles in a game when he just appeared for one play. He ran for 4.9 yards a carry without that one play. He fumbled against them seven times, his passer rating was 72.5 and they sacked him 16 times in eight appearances.

It helps having quick-reacting linebackers like Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards but the main reason the Bears should be able to battle this type of attack is obvious. They're in zone, facing the quarterback and not with their backs turned. It's easier to read and rally to the ball in that scheme.

There's more involved facing the Commanders, though, and that's the tendency to go no-huddle or "tempo." The Bears do a lot of this themselves.

"When you do no-huddle–or (calling plays) on the ball like that–it's just about the communication and being ready on defense," Eberflus said. "That's what the intent is of the offense."

It's part of the reason Kingsbury's offense is often called "a college offense," by opponents.

"I was in college football as a coordinator and four years at the other place (Colts) I was at, we've seen it," Eberflus said. "You just have to be really good at getting lined up, communicate and make sure you're right.

"It's going to be about what you're doing first. Then, being able to execute a multitude of things at that speed."

The problem, of course, is the speed is much greater if it's Daniels playing instead of a 31-year-old journeyman with his fifth team and a 34-40 career record as a starter.

Twitter: BearsOnSI

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.