Tyson Bagent has a real chance to win the Bears QB2 job

Shortly after the final whistle sounded in the Chicago Bears' 24 to 17 preseason loss to the Indianapolis Colts, FOX 32's Lou Canellis caught up with undrafted free agent quarterback Tyson Bagent. He asked him if he felt he's done enough to earn a spot on Chicago's 53-man roster, and Bagent humbly said that's not up to him, but he added, "I love being a Chicago Bear, and I'd love to be a Chicago Bear for a long time."

Bagent was the second QB in the game for Chicago, and he played the entire second quarter, leading an impressive 17-play, 92-yard scoring drive that he capped himself with a two-yard touchdown run.

Head coach Matt Eberflus moved Bagent up the depth chart for the Colts game to see how he'd perform with a better supporting cast.

And he rose to the occasion.

On the night, he was 9 of 10 passing for 76 yards and a passer rating of 98.3. He also had two runs for 4 yards and that touchdown.

"I saw poise,' Eberflus said of his rookie UDFA QB. "The delivery was there. The accuracy looked pretty good. Decision-making was good."

If his first preseason action against the Titans last week, he went 4 of 5 for 37 yards and a passer rating of 97.5. With back-to-back good games, could he move up the depth chart again and supplant current QB2 P.J. Walker?

"I would just say everything is open right now, and it's not just that position, it's every position," coach 'Flus said in his postgame presser via NBC's Josh Schrock. "If the guy is in a competition, everybody can look at the roster and see who's in a competition. Those are all going to be open. I think if you close your mind off to that, you might be missing on something."

So while Eberflus didn't say that Bagent could win the QB2 job, he left the possibility on the table.

Walker was signed to be Justin Fields' backup, but his training camp hasn't been impressive, and in two preseason games, he's completed just 5 of 12 passes for 25 yards, 0 TDs, 1 interception, and a 14.6 passer rating.

Coach ‘Flus added, "You've got to let it play itself out, is what we say as coaches. Don't predetermine things, let things play out, and that's the way you do it as a coach, and you'll find that that's usually the best decision."

The other backup quarterback on the roster, veteran Nathan Peterman, has been solid this preseason in going 14 of 24 for 173 yards with 1 TD, which is good for a passer rating of 94.6. If there's truly an open competition at reserve QB, then Walker may be pushed off the roster entirely.

Before Saturday night, I thought the Bears would try to sneak Bagent onto the practice squad, but now it seems the Bears are prepared to keep him on the 53-man roster. If he makes it, that likely means the Bears would carry three quarterbacks on game day.

And that's because the new emergency quarterback rule states teams that carry a third QB on the active roster can dress him on gamedays while receiving an extra 49th active roster spot.