Case Keenum to Start For Bears in Week 3 Despite Tyson Bagent Clearing Concussion Protocol

NFL insider Jay Glazer reports that the Bears will start Case Keenum over Tyson Bagent despite Bagent clearing the concussion protocol.

Chicago Bears quarterback Tyson Bagent (17) runs onto the field before the game against the Minnesota Vikings at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With Caleb Williams ruled out for the Week 3 game against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Chicago Bears are turning to their backups.

The expectation has been that if Tyson Bagent is able to clear the concussion protocol in time for the game, that he would get the start over Case Keenum.

Well, Bagent has passed the concussion protocol and is good to go for Week 3, the Bears announced on Sunday, but he will not start and instead the Bears will turn to Keenum, according to FOX's Jay Glazer.

Glazer writes that Keenum is getting the nod because Bagent wasn't involved enough in the game plan.

"(Tyson Bagent) just passed concussion protocol this morning. So he will be in tomorrow night; he’ll be the backup quarterback. They couldn’t make him the starter because he wasn’t involved too much in the game plan," Glazer reported on FOX. (H/T Patrick Norton of CHGO Bears).

There's a very good reason why Bagent wasn't very involved in preparing for the game, as he was working his way through the concussion protocol during the week.

Bagent didn't get into the building until Thursday as part of the concussion protocol, and he didn't take part in practice on Friday before turning in a full session on Saturday and drawing the questionable tag for Monday night.

Keenum hasn't started a game since 2023, when he was a member of the Houston Texans. That was the same season in which Bagent made his first and only four career starts.

Caleb Williams injury timeline updated

We got some bad news on Caleb Williams on Sunday, with ESPN's Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport reporting that Williams has a Grade 2 hamstring strain and he will miss three to four weeks.

"Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has a Grade 2 hamstring injury that doctors say could sideline him for three to four weeks, league sources told ESPN and NFL Network," the NFL insiders wrote on Sunday morning.

The initial belief was Williams had suffered a less serious strain, which obviously would have led to a shorter absence for the Bears' quarterback.

This isn't Bears fans' first rodeo with seeing reports being wrong about an injury to a player on the team. We saw that happen in the offseason with safety Coby Bryant, who wasn't believed to have a significant injury before it was discovered he would miss most, if not all, of the season.

Now, we have to wonder if Williams might be placed on injured reserve. Either way, it looks like it'll be multiple weeks of Keenum and/or Bagent moving forward.

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