Winners and Losers From Chicago Bears Preseason Opener

A few players helped themselves greatly in the Bears 34-10 win over the Browns today. Conversely, a few others didn't do themselves any favors.

Aug 15, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Tyson Bagent (17) passes the ball against the Cleveland Browns during the first half at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Chicago Bears might not have started hot in their preseason opener against the Cleveland Browns, but they certainly finished that way.

After putting themselves in a 10-0 hole in the second quarter, the Bears bounced back strong and went on a 34-0 run to win 34-10.

A few players stood out among their peers and played a massive role in their comeback victory. However, that was not the case for everyone. A few others struggled mightily and didn't look the part.

Who are some of the most significant examples of each category from the impressive win? Let's dive into the details.

Winner: Kaden Davis

Former Detroit Lions wide receiver Kaden Davis. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Receiver Kaden Davis was already the front-runner for the title of "training camp superstar," and he all but wrapped up the conversation Saturday.

Aside from one early drop with a defender coming in hot (he definitely heard the footsteps bearing down on him), he played lights out. He clearly has a strong connection with backup quarterback Tyson Bagent, and Davis finished the game with four grabs for 88 yards.

He looks to have a clear edge on some of the other pass-catchers he's battling with. That's not much of a surprise if you've been paying attention to the noise coming out of camp, though.

It's truly a wonder how Davis, who joined the league as an undrafted free agent in 2022 and has spent time with six teams, has yet to log a catch in a regular season game.

Loser: Cairo Santos

Chicago Bears place kicker Cairo Santos. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Aside from a great performance from Tory Taylor, the overall special teams performance was less than stellar on Saturday.

Maybe kicker Cairo Santos intends to get the missed field goals out of the way early this year? It's much better to miss them in the preseason than when the games start to matter, after all. Jokes aside, Santos is expected to hit the 50-yard field goal he missed early in the second quarter every time he's up to bat.

To his credit, Santos did bounce back and made the 51-yard attempt right before halftime. He also hit another from 49 yards out midway through the fourth quarter. However, you would've liked to see the Bears' all-time leader in made field goals beyond 50 yards hit both attempts in preseason Week 1.

Winner: Roschon Johnson

Chicago Bears running back Roschon Johnson. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Roshon Johnson wasn't perfect on Saturday and had a drop that he probably would've liked to haul in.

However, aside from that, he played like someone eager to fight for his roster spot. The 25-year-old finished the game with 8 carries for 34 yards and hauled in one catch for three yards (while also failing to haul in another target).

Many of his runs were blocked well (the offensive line deserves its flowers, as the unit settled in well after early struggles), but the Browns also had him dead to rights in the backfield before he broke free for a modest gain of three yards. Likewise, he also deserves credit for making the most of his opportunities when the running lanes were there.

Loser: Jedrick Wills Jr.

Former Cleveland Browns offensive tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Jedrick Wills Jr. didn't play well in his Bears preseason debut.

A few plays after seemingly struggling to get to his assignment on a pitch play to Roschon Johnson, he got completely overpowered by Browns edge-rusher Julian Okwara. He also got beat badly on the very next play, which resulted in the Bears' lone interception of the day.

Wills probably lost some ground in the left tackle competition. Perhaps notably, Kiran Amegadjie was back on the field on the next drive after Wills' blunders, and he wasn't off at any point today (which is another negative for Wills). With Braxton Jones returning to practice on Thursday, the Bears will hopefully be able to get him some live reps next week against Cincinnati.

Winner: Salvon Ahmed

Chicago Bears running back Salvon Ahmed (36) and running back Roschon Johnson (23). | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Johnson wasn't the only running back who had a strong performance Saturday, as Salvon Ahmed also showed out.

He had the most explosive play of the game when he took a screen pass 49 yards to the house early in the second half. Again, the offensive line deserves a ton of credit for leveling out a healthy amount of key blocks downfield to spring him (they will surely get a lot of love in the film room this week), but he found the lane and hit it with authority.

The 27-year-old also made the most of his limited opportunities on the ground, adding two carries for 17 yards. The RB3 battle will be a mighty interesting one to keep an eye on over the final two preseason games. Chicago will probably keep four backs if both players can build on the strong start.

Loser: Tyson Bagent

Chicago Bears quarterback Tyson Bagent. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

This one might be controversial.

Tyson Bagent's final stat line doesn't look too bad. He played the entire first half and finished the game with 169 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT, and added a 7-yard run for good measure. He also hit a few great intermediate throws in rhythm when they were there (the Browns clearly had no answer for Davis).

However, he also looked jittery early on and threw a really bad interception midway through the second quarter. He also took a bad sack that almost knocked the Bears out of field goal range at the end of the first half.

All things considered, Bagent hit enough throws to look like a solid backup. However, he's established himself as one of the league's premier backup quarterbacks and the expectation level has been raised. He was expected to have a big game but fell a bit short of that bar.

Winner: Jamree Kromah

Chicago Bears defensive end Jamree Kromah. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Defensive end Jamree Kromah might not be a big name, but he provided a big spark to the defense when things were looking BLEAK.

The Browns were up 10-0 and driving before he got a strip sack on Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson. The fact that he also recovered the fumble was icing on the cake. The Bears went on to score 34 unanswered points and held Cleveland out of the end zone for the rest of the day. It was the momentum shift the Bears sorely needed.

On top of that impressive play, he was also regularly in the backfield and putting pressure on whoever was under center for Cleveland. He later added another sack on third-stringer Dillon Gabriel.

It might be tough for Kromah to stick around when it's all said and done, but he definitely got off on the right foot in that endeavor today. He deserves his flowers for the impressive performance.

Loser: Qadir Ismail

Former Las Vegas Raiders tight end Qadir Ismail. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Tight end Qadir Ismail needed a strong performance to stand out in a crowded tight ends room. Unfortunately, he stood for the wrong reasons.

The 26-year-old dropped a pass early in the fourth quarter and then committed a false start on the very next play. Committing those two plays in unison would be among the quickest ways to earn a head coach's ire.

Ismail has a treacherous path to the active roster, and his practice squad candidacy is far from set in stone. He didn't help himself on Saturday. He'll need to bounce back strong over the final two preseason matchups to stick around in any capacity.

Winner: Beanie Bishop

Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Beanie Bishop Jr. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

I mean, cornerback Beanie Bishop finished the game with two interceptions. How could he not be one of the biggest winners on the day? In all seriousness, he should send Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel a thank-you card for the two gifts they threw his way. They were about as easy of interceptions as you'll ever see. With that said, Bishop still finished both plays by hauling in the gifts.

The Bears have quality depth at the cornerback position, and his roster spot is far from set in stone. However, he certainly helped himself in preseason Wek 1. He's got the early edge on the interception leaderboard, and that should help him stand out from the crowd if he happens to get axed when it comes time to cut down to 53 players.