The Bears played without Justin Fields in Week 7, and won't have him again for Week 8 as head coach Matt Eberflus confirmed Tyson Bagent would get the start again against the Chargers. The team has no current plans to place the third-year quarterback on injured reserve, sources tell CBS Sports. In fact, Eberflus said Fields is continuing to progress from a thumb injury.
The undrafted rookie got his first start of his NFL career, leading the Bears to a 30-12 win over the Raiders. Fields, dealing with a dislocated thumb on his right hand, has had difficulty gripping the ball, and didn't practice at all last week.
The minimum number of games a player must miss after being placed on injured reserve is four. Indeed, it's possible Fields winds up missing four games. But his importance to the team weighs heavily in the decision to keep him off short-term injured reserve in the event he can heal more quickly than expected.
After the Raiders game, the 2-5 Bears face the Chargers, Saints and Panthers. It's possible Fields can return to play against the Saints.
Fields was playing his best ball of the season just before the injury. He threw for a combined 617 passing yards and eight passing touchdowns against the Broncos and Commanders, and he helped the Bears get their first win in 13 games with the Week 5 victory against Washington.
As it stands now, Chicago is unlikely to be active at or near the trade deadline. The Bears shipped Robert Quinn and Roquan Smith off last fall ahead of the deadline, but sources indicated the team isn't jazzed about sending away more players for mid-round picks this year.
Bagent earned the backup job in training camp after the Bears cut P.J. Walker. The team likes his decisiveness, and it looks forward to seeing what he can do in his second career start with another full week of practice with the starters.
