These 4 players deserve game balls in the Chicago Bears’ win over the Panthers

It wasn’t pretty, but the Chicago Bears left Soldier Field on Thursday night the victors over the Carolina Panthers, 16-13. Remember: ugly wins count the same as pretty wins.

Thursday night’s game was a blast from the past for Bears fans as they watched their defense put vice-like clamps on the opposing team, creating opportunities for the offense to build a big lead, only to watch them put up just one touchdown and a trio of field goals.

Tyson Bagent took care of the ball this week and did not have any turnovers or sacks, but he did nothing awe-inspiring in what seems likely to be his last start of the season.

But Chicago Bears fans have the next ten days to worry about who’s starting at quarterback and how the offense will respond in their next matchup. For now, the team can enjoy a well-earned victory over a team that owes the Bears their first-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, which is in the mix to be the first overall selection.

Let’s hand out some game balls.

Cairo Santos

For as clutch as he’s been for Chicago, it doesn’t seem like Santos gets enough recognition around the league. He’s missed just one field goal this season and has made 21 of his last 23 field goal attempts. On Thursday night, he was up for the challenge, connecting on all three of his attempts, including a 54-yarder following a Bears penalty that backed them up five yards.

Tyson Bagent

Something looked a little off with Bagent most of the night. He was not using his legs in situations where it seemed like he could have run for a chunk of yards, and he didn’t seem to have that same swagger he’d been playing with in previous weeks.

That disastrous fourth quarter against the Saints must have rattled him. Still, he came out on prime time and took care of the football, which I said earlier this week was a key to getting the win. I wouldn’t say he looked good against the Panthers, but he didn’t lose the game for the Bears, so he gets a game ball.

Bagent’s now 2-2 as a starter this season, which is realistically the most you can expect of a backup. Just keep the team afloat. He’s likely going to return to the QB2 spot by the time the Bears play their next game, but it was fun to watch the undrafted rookie from a Division II school transition to the NFL, and it will be interesting to see how his career develops.

Montez Sweat

The newest addition to Chicago’s defensive line still hasn’t registered a sack, but man, he’s been close. He lived in Carolina’s backfield, making life a living hell for quarterback Bryce Young. He had eight pressures on and a pair of QB hits, too.

You can already see the uplifting effect he’s having on the entire defensive line, as the Bears registered three sacks and nine quarterback hits as a team. The trade for Sweat and the extension Ryan Poles signed him to already look like a home run.

Kyler Gordon

He’s just your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man!

Gordon had arguably his best game as a pro on Thursday night, finishing the game with four tackles for no gain or a loss, a pass breakup, and just 16 receiving yards allowed. Here’s hoping the Bears can extend Jaylon Johnson soon because these two could be an exciting cornerback duo for years to come.

Honorable Mentions: D’Onta Foreman for putting up 80 yards on 21 attempts and a touchdown, and TJ Edwards for leading the team with 12 tackles (pushing his season total to an incredible 112 total tackles and counting). Don’t look now, but he’s on track to shatter Brian Urlacher’s franchise record of 153 total tackles in a season.