From the moment Tyson Bagent stepped on the field for the Chicago Bears, as a rookie, one could tell he belonged. The former DII standout and multi-record holder quickly earned his spot on the team during his rookie campaign and became the bonafide backup.
Entering Year 2, Bagent’s role will stay the same, but also becomes a whole lot different. He is backing up the no. 1 overall pick, Caleb Williams; a player who comes in as the best quarterback prospect the league has seen since Andrew Luck.
If you asked Bagent, he’s not only ready to support Williams, but eager to be part of what could be an explosive offense, thanks to all of the playmakers at the quarterback’s disposal.
On a recent episode of the CHGO Bears Podcast, Bagent gave them some quality time and it resulted in a phenomenal interview. For fans that haven’t listened yet, you’ll want to go check it out.
One of the biggest takeaways from Bagent’s comments, though, was how highly he spoke of Chicago’s wide receivers, starting with the recently-paid D.J. Moore.
“He’s the best receiver in the world … I’ve never seen anybody like him,” Bagent said of Moore.
There’s backing up your teammates, and then there’s providing a statement like that.
The quarterback went on to talk about how Moore was clearly deserving of his new contract with the Bears and complimented the receiver as a human being and father, as well. There was an abundance of high praise for his no. 1 wideout.
The love was overflowing.
It turns out, Bears fans aren’t crazy for thinking they might have the best receiver room in the NFL this year.
How about Keenan Allen? CHGO’s Mark Carman pointed out that it seems like Allen is always open when watching practice lately, and he asked Bagent if that was an accurate assessment.
“100 percent, 100 percent … He’s the most creative, understanding route runner I may have ever seen,” Bagent responded.
So, in Bagent’s eyes, the Bears have the best receiver in the world in addition to the best route runner he’s ever seen. Are we tracking?
Finally, the CHGO guys wanted to talk about Rome Odunze, who is looking like quite the luxury as the team’s current WR3.
Bagent couldn’t hide his excitement about the rookie, putting on his GM hat and talking about just how polished Odunze is as a first-year player:
“If I was in charge of bringing players into the facility, and I was looking at receivers … watching his tape and seeing how athletic he is, and seeing him win all the one-on-one, 50/50 balls … and then hearing him speak, him always being where he’s supposed to be, running the right routes, running the best version of the route … it’s just a no-brainer.”
As a quarterback, Bagent also said it’s great to know that he and Caleb won’t have to worry about Odunze being out of place or not knowing what to do when a play breaks down:
“It’s obvious that he was supposed to be this early of a pick, and he’s a guy you won’t have to worry about being in the right place at the right time.”
Bagent did go on to compliment other names in his receiver room like second-year pro Tyler Scott, talking up his speed and versatility.
For a player who has only been around a year, Bagent seems more than comfortable with the locker room and, specifically, his wide receiver room. He talked a lot about being there to help support Caleb and emulated the definition of a team-first mentality.
While other franchises might not have the perfect backup quarterback situation, at the moment, Chicago can honestly say the opposite. Bagent is exactly who this Bears team needs in his position.
And, as fans can tell, he’s the ultimate hype man.
