Bear Digest

Game balls in Bears' preseason Week 1 tie with the Dolphins

The Chicago Bears couldn't quite overcome a slow start in their preseason opener on Sunday, which resulted in a tie, but these four players made an outsized impact.
Pete Martuneac|
Peter van den Berg-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

Well, at least the Chicago Bears didn't lose their first preseason game under head coach Ben Johnson. They dueled the Mike McDaniel-led Miami Dolphins to the very end, resulting in a 24-24 tie game. Despite the suboptimal ending, the game was an exciting one for Bears fans as several key players stepped up to make big plays time and time again.

Let's hand out some game balls to Chicago's best performers of the day.

1. Austin Booker

It's rare to see a second-year player almost single-handedly derail an opponent's game plan, but that's what Booker did in the first half. He was a juggernaut on the field, racking up three sacks, four QB hits, and a forced fumble that was recovered by the Bears inside Miami's 5-yard line.

GM Ryan Poles has said this offseason that he wants to be able to send 'waves of pass rushers' after opposing quarterbacks this season, and Booker proved that Chicago has the depth to do exactly that.

2. Case Keenum

In the battle for the QB2 spot, it would appear that Keenum came out on top on Sunday. Tyson Bagent's up-and-down day was more good than bad, which included an insane touchdown pass in the first half, but Keenum looked to be in more command of the offense and ultimately put more points on the board than Bagent. Keenum also had the best throw of the day, even better than Bagent's lone touchdown.

At the end of the day, no matter who wins the backup quarterback job, Chicago should be in capable hands if Caleb Williams has to miss any games.

3. Kyle Monangai

With the Bears' messy running back room still a work in progress, even seventh-round rookie Kyle Monangai has a chance of seeing plenty of action in his first NFL season, and his preseason debut only made that more likely. He did not touch the ball often, but he put his best foot forward by averaging 5 yards per carry on six attempts.

Hopefully, the fans can see more of Monangai next week against the Buffalo Bills. If he can stack performances like Sunday's, the Bears could suddenly find themselves with a powerful running back room.

Honorable Mentions: Cairo Santos hit what would have been a career-long 57-yard field goal had it come in a regular season game, an encouraging sign after his blocked 41-yard attempt against the Packers last year. Noah Sewell was a menace on Miami's opening drive, making several key tackles like his 4th-and-goal tackle to hold the Dolphins scoreless.

Noah Sewel
David Banks-Imagn Images

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Pete Martuneac
PETE MARTUNEAC

A former Marine and Purdue Boilermaker, Pete has been covering the Chicago Bears since 2022 as a senior contributor on BearsTalk. He lives with his wife, two kids and loyal dog.

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