Bears vs Colts Preseason: Inside the snap counts, stats, and more

After a week of joint practices, the Chicago Bears lost 24 to 17 to the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday night in a battle of the backups. This was the first preseason loss in the head coaching career of Chicago's Matt Eberflus and the first preseason win for Indy's Shane Steichen, who is in his first year as head coach.

The Colts had more total yards (343 to 310) and more first downs (21 to 18), as their two quarterbacks (Gardner Minshew and Sam Ehlinger) combined for 231 yards on 22 of 29 passing, one touchdown, and a passer rating of 110.0.

The Indianapolis running game went for 31 attempts, 123 yards, and 2 TDs, while Chicago's rushing attack was good for 134 yards on 30 attempts with a TD.

Before we get into some more numbers, here are all the Bears that didn't play against the Colts.

And here is how the Bears started the day.

Here are the Bears' playing time breakdowns and some individual stats.

OFFENSE

Rookie UDFA Tyson Bagent seems to have moved up to QB3, and I wonder if he also has a spot on the 53-man roster secured. The Bears gave him the second-quarter reps after starter P.J. Walker, and then they pulled him so QB4 Nathan Peterman could take them home in the second half. Bagent finished 9 of 10 passing for 76 yards, which was good for a passer rating of 98.3. He also had 2 runs for 4 yards and a touchdown.

Walker was just 1 of 4 for 6 yards while being sacked twice, and he hasn't done much this offseason to lock down the job as Justin Fields' primary backup.

Peterman completed 10 of his 18 passes for 115 yards with a TD and a passer rating of 93.5. He also had 22 rushing yards on 4 runs.

Chicago's leading rusher was UDFA fullback Robert Burns with 40 yards on 8 carries (and a fumble). He also had 3 catches for 15 yards.

Fellow rookie Roschon Johnson ran 7 times for 32 yards while catching 1 ball for 11 yards.

The Bears have some decent depth in their wide receiver room, and there's a battle brewing at the bottom of the depth chart and for a handful of practice squad spots.

Daurice Fountain had 5 receptions for 86 yards and this TD.

Nsimba Webster caught 3 for 15 yards with an 11-yard rush, Isaiah Ford had 2 catches for 31, and a returning Dante Pettis had 2 receptions for 13 yards and 2 punt returns for 5 yards.

DEFENSE

With so many players participating on defense, I’ll split this snap count list into two.

Safeties A.J. Thomas and Kendall Williamson and linebackers Mykal Walker and Davion Taylor led the Bears with 5 defensive tackles apiece. Williamson added a tackle for loss and a special teams' tackle, and Walker chipped in with 2 tackles in the third phase.

Rookie DT Zacch Pickens had 3 tackles, 1 TFL, and a QB hit.

Rookie corner Tyrique Stevenson had 3 tackles, another unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, plus this missed opportunity for an interception.

Defensive end Terell Lewis continues his memorable offseason with 2 tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble.

Trevis Gipson chipped in with 3 tackles and a QB hit.

In the battle at strongside linebacker, Jack Sanborn had 4 tackles and rookie Noah Sewell had 2.

SPECIAL TEAMS*

*The above image has players that only played in the third phase.

Besides the three specialists, the other Bear that only played in the third phase was their International Pathway player, o-lineman Roy Mbaeteka, who will have a practice squad exemption for the entire regular season.

Cairo Santos was a perfect 2 for 2 on extra points, and he hit a 50-yard field goal.

Trenton Gill punted 4 times for 182 yards (45.5 average).

Joe Reed had 99 kick return yards on 4 tries.

Adrian Colbert had 2 tackles on special teams.

The special teams' snap counts give a good idea of who the Bears are looking at for depth on their 53-man roster.

To check out the complete Bears vs Colts box score, I find that ESPN has an easy-to-navigate site.

All statistics and snap counts are taken directly from the NFL's Game Statistic and Information System, as are the accompanying pictures.