Pollsters Love the Tyson Bagent Story

Everyone loves the story of Secret Bagent Man, Tyson Bagent.

They don't seem to love the Bears, though.

Despite drubbing the Las Vegas Raiders, the Bears can't find their way out of the bottom end of power rankings and in some cases this week actually dropped a spot or two.

ESPN and CBS both dropped the Bears in their power rankings. What do they need to do to rise? Win by 19 or 20?

They're even well behind the Raiders in many polls this week. The absence of Jimmy Garoppolo didn't cause roadkill there. The Raiders defense got dissected by D'Onta Foreman and the Secret Bagent Man and it didn't have a thing to do with the Raiders offense, which, by the way, don't they still have the NFL rushing champion on that team?

A few polls made note of the Bears running or playing defense or both, which is the real story behind the Tyson Bagent start. With that kind of defense and running, Justin Fields might be able to take the Bears to some wins, too.

Here's where they see the Bears at this week:

SI.com: 30th

Conor Orr points out how he nearly fell over when Bagent checked down in the third quarter while being chased by Maxx Crosby. Well, the do have pass rushers in Division II, as well. I nearly fell over when I saw they couldn't get any higher than 30th in this poll for that win.

USA Today: 28th

Up by one place, and Nate Davis points out how DJ Moore's 636 yards are almost 100 yards more than any Bears player had for the full 2022 season.

NFL Network: 29th

Also up one in this poll, and Eric Edholm took it upon himself to ridicule the teams Bagent used to play, like Southern Connecticut State, Kutztown and East Stroudsburg, while he was at Shepherd. Edholm forgot to mention Colorado School of Mines, the school that eliminated Shepherd in last year's playoffs. Yes, that is the Colorado School of Mines, not Mimes. The Colorado School of Mimes is just a pretend school.

CBS Sports: 28th

Pete Prisco dropped them down one spot for beating the Raiders but really outdid himself with this commentary: "Tyson Bagent played well in beating the Raiders. the defense also made big strides in that game."

What's next week, a 30-point win over the Chargers, dropping to 30th and the comment: "They played good?"

Fox Sports: 29th

David Helman moved them up a spot and pointed out how Justin Fields' absence only hinders his development, "...but that's not Tyson Bagent's problem. Shout out to the rookie for a wonderful performance, giving the Bears their first home win since Week 3 of 2022."

Yahoo Sports: 29th

Frank Schwab has the Bears right where they were last week, even after the rout and said of Bagent: "Certainly a fun subplot in the Bears' season."

The 33rd Team: 28th

Someone actually rewarded the Bears. They climbed to 28th in this poll and Ryan Reynolds noted how the defense had played well two weeks in a row. Actually it was three because they took the ball away twice and shut down Washington's running game in holding the Commanders to 20 points with five sacks three weeks ago but who's counting. It's hard to keep track when they've had so much success. Reynolds did point out how the ceiling is limited for the offense without Fields playing. What he doesn't say is it seemed a few times like the ceiling was falling in on them when Fields was playing, too.

ESPN: 30th

They dropped one spot by winning and beat reporter Courtney Cronin labeled Bagent as their young rising player. Honestly, Darnell Wright or Tyler Scott probably deserve that title more but it is difficult not to be impressed by Bagent's coolness in the face of all the hype.

The Sporting News: 30th

The win did them no good in this poll as they stayed in the same position. Vinnie Iyer pointed out it was much easier for Bagent to win as an undrafted Division II QB than for Fields when the defense and running game pick up the burden as they haven't all year.

NBC Sports/Pro Football Talk: No. 24

Mike Florio has the Bears soaring from 27th to 24th, and asks the question everyone wants to know this week.

"Is Tyson Bagent ready for prime time? Ready or not, here prime time comes," he wrote.

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