Overlooked Reason Tyson Bagent Won’t Take Starting Job From Justin Fields

One thing about football fans is they love a good quarterback controversy. They’ll never admit it, but there is arguably no greater drama for an organization from a strict football sense than having two quarterbacks vying for the starting job. The Chicago Bears have been in this position several times over the years. It was Sid Luckman and Johnny Lujack in the 1940s. It was Eric Kramer and Steve Walsh in the 1990s. More recently, you had Mitch Trubisky and Nick Foles. Now it appears people are ready to make one between Justin Fields and Tyson Bagent.

It felt inevitable after what happened last Sunday. Fields was down with a dislocated thumb. Bagent, an undrafted rookie, started against Las Vegas and led an efficient, balanced effort that resulted in a 30-12 victory. Bagent completed over 70% of his passes with a touchdown and no turnovers. It was an impressive showing from somebody who’d never started a game before. It also raised questions about why Fields couldn’t look that polished despite starting far more games.

Head coach Matt Eberflus made it clear there is no QB controversy. Once Fields’ thumb is healthy, he will play. That isn’t a big surprise. While the idea of Bagent being a hidden gem is exciting, the reality is one thing is holding him back from bringing that fruition.

Time.

Tyson Bagent doesn’t have enough time to prove himself.

Based on the latest reports, it sounds like Fields will be back after this week’s game in Los Angeles. That means Bagent will have had two games to make an impression. That isn’t enough. A coaching staff can’t in good conscience change the overall plan at quarterback from two games, even if Bagent manages to beat the Chargers. History is pretty consistent in these situations. Go back and look at the most famous instances of backups overtaking established starters. They all feature the same situation. The starter got hurt and was out for an extended period of time.

• Jim Plunkett – Got full season after Dan Pastorini broke his leg
• Doug Flutie – Got a month after Rob Johnson suffered torn rib cartilage.
• Kurt Warner – Got a full season after Trent Green tore his ACL
• Tom Brady – Got several weeks after Drew Bledsoe suffered a sheared blood vessel in his chest
• Brock Purdy – Got several weeks after Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo both got long-term injuries

Tyson Bagent isn’t in that situation. Fields is due back soon. So unless he somehow gets hurt again, Sunday night might be the last time the undrafted rookie sees action this year. That is why this quarterback controversy everyone keeps talking about will never get off the ground. The window for it to unfold isn’t big enough. Maybe the coaches go against the trend if Bagent plays out of his mind in L.A., but that seems unlikely.