Williams (hamstring) Q-tag, Bagent likely starts

Head coach Ben Johnson said on Sunday that Williams would be “close” to suiting up for Week 6, and he reportedly had a good workout before Week 5’s game against the Packers. Williams has missed the last three games with the hamstring injury he suffered in Week 2, but the Bears have managed to go 2-1 over that span. Williams logged one limited practice last week, after being a DNP on Wednesday and Thursday. If he can get on the practice field multiple days this week, it would be a good sign for his availability for next week’s game against the Falcons.

It was time. Bagent found himself on the pine for the entirely of the final frame. Before his removal, he had thrown two awful picks without coming particularly close to any noteworthy plays. Bagent lacks NFL caliber arm strength, and it is worth wondering if coach Ben Johnson would have stuck with Case Keenum for the duration of Caleb Williams’ absence had he not wanted to avoid the precedent that you can lose your job while concussed (Bagent missed Week 2 with the aforementioned head injury). It’s hopefully a moot point now, as Williams appears set to return from his hamstring issue in Week 6 against the Falcons. If it’s not Williams, it will almost certainly be Keenum. Bagent can be cut loose in superflex leagues.

Why the Bears went through the dog and pony show of labeling Williams as “questionable” when everybody knew he would not be playing, nobody knows. Either way, Williams appears to have a strong chance of returning for Week 6 against the Falcons. Expect another run-heavy game plan, even without Monangai, in what should be the final game of the Tyson Bagent experience for the time being.

Williams is technically listed as questionable for Week 5 versus the Packers, but Tyson Bagent is fully expected to make the start. Still, Williams’ return to practice on Friday was a pleasant surprise for Bears fans. If all goes well in practice next week, he could return after missing just three games, which was on the short end of his projected timeline.

Caleb Williams (hamstring) practiced in a limited capacity today, and the Bears ended up listing him as questionable to play. Consider him highly questionable. Rushing their star quarterback back onto the field when Bagent and Case Keenum have both played well is unnecessary. Regardless, keep an eye on this situation.

The Bears have a progression plan in place for Williams’ rehab, and per Johnson, the star quarterback is “right on track.” Williams resumed throwing “a little bit the other day.” Although the team does not yet know when Williams will retake the field on game day, they have set up a series of benchmarks for him to hit. Their Week 7 Thursday Night Football game could complicate things. Bringing Williams back in Week 6 would give him a short turnaround, and he could be sore after his first game back. Expect them to handle this cautiously. The Bears currently sit in second in the NFC North with a 3-1 record.

Williams has already been ruled out for Week 5, but Wiederer notes that he is “progressing notably with his on-field recovery steps.” He added that the Bears having a Thursday game in Week 7 complicates things slightly. If Williams returns in Week 6, he will have an unusually short turnaround to his next game. That’s a bridge the Bears will potentially have to cross next week. For now. Tyson Bagent will draw the start again on Sunday. Ben Johnson has made magic with both of his backups so far. We fully expect the offense to survive one more week without Williams under center.

Williams is at least one more week away from returning from the hamstring injury he suffered in Week 2. The Bears will again start Tyson Bagent in Week 5 against the Bears after Bagent looked solid in his first start since 2023. Bagent threw for 268 scoreless yards against the Jets, completing 73.5 percent of his passes while throwing zero touchdowns and one interception. We’ll see if Williams gets any closer to playing when the Bears visit the Falcons in Week 6.

We assumed this was where things were heading after Bagent turned in a solid outing in his first start against the Jets. Bagent has been the QB2 on the Bears’ depth chart throughout the season and only missed Week 3’s start against the Eagles because he spent most of the week in the league’s concussion protocol. Bagent threw for 268 yards and one interception in Sunday’s win over the Jets and will have some appeal in 2QB/Superflex leagues, especially with the Chiefs and Panthers both on byes in Week 5.

Getting the start after Case Keenum led the Bears to victory in Week 3 against the Eagles, Bagent successfully managed the run-heavy Bears offense. He was inaccurate for stretches of the game, throwing at least two balls that should have been intercepted by the New York secondary. On the day he was 8 percent over his expected completion rate. Bagent targeted Rom Odunze a team-high nine times. He connected with Colston Loveland and Luther Burden III a handful of times on well-times throws to the middle of the field. Bagent will get another start in Week 5 against the Packers with Caleb Williams sidelined. He’ll have some superflex appeal in that matchup.