Tyson Bagent’s strong debut earns respect, intrigue in NFL QB Rankings

Before Week 7’s slate of games, many analysts and fans wrote off the Chicago Bears as likely losers. Justin Fields was injured, and starting in his place was an undrafted rookie quarterback from a Division II school that no one had ever heard of.

Fast-forward to the eve of Week 8, and Tyson Bagent is one of the hottest names in the NFL.

Bagent’s stats won’t be confused for Patrick Mahomes any time soon, but his poise, confidence, and precision with the football in Week 7’s win over the Raiders surprised many analysts. They’re buying into Bagentmania, for now.

Let’s take a look at where Tyson Bagent checks in in the latest 2023 NFL QB rankings.

NFL.com – 29th

Starting with the lowest ranking for Bagent, Nick Shook of “Around the NFL” ranked Bagent just ahead of Bryce Young, Bryan Hoyer, and PJ Walker, which seems fair. Bagent was, after all, efficient if unspectacular. As Shook put it: “Bagent relied on his athleticism to create positive plays, and most importantly, never made a crushing mistake against the Raiders.”

This mainly summarizes what others have said about Bagent in his debut. Former quarterbacks Chase Daniels and Tim Jenkins, after posting film reviews of Bagent’s game, agreed that while there wasn’t anything particularly exciting about his debut, the very fact that a Division II rookie quarterback started an NFL game, made no costly mistakes, and won was impressive on its own.

CBS Sports – 28th

CBS Sports’ Cody Benjamin ranked Bagent one spot higher on his list of quarterbacks, right behind Bryce Young and Mac Jones, crediting him with the “it” factor.

That “it” factor usually separates good quarterbacks from great ones.

Bagent is, of course, as far as one can be from the upper echelon of NFL quarterbacks right now, but if he indeed does have that “it” factor, it should make for must-see-TV every time he takes the field.

Pro Football Network – 23rd

This came as a surprise, even for me. Dalton Miller of PFN checks Bagent in at 23rd overall, right behind Gardner Minshew and (Bears fans will love this) five spots ahead of Green Bay’s Jordan Love.

“Bagent did a great job distributing the ball with efficiency,” Dalton wrote, “but there was a complete lack of explosiveness that no team can get away with against better opponents.”

It’s a fair assessment of Bagent’s debut. Give him all the credit in the world for looking like he belongs in the NFL as a backup, but he must put some explosive plays on tape. He’ll get his chance on the NFL’s biggest regular-season stage on Sunday night.