Bagent

SHEPHERDSTOWN — Third-year quarterback Tyson Bagent has received a multi-year contract extension worth $10 million from the Chicago Bears. Bagent is Shepherd University’s career leader in passing yards (17,034) and career touchdown passes (159) in his 53 career games as a four-year starter for the Rams. He finished his college career at Shepherd with 400 pass completions.

After establishing his school records as a Ram, Bagent went undrafted by any NFL team and was eventually signed by the Bears to a free agent contract.

He had completed 69% of his pass attempts, as a collegian player. Shepherd, an NCAA Division II school, was nationally recognized as a division power and Bagent’s exploits well known and widely recognized. He was awarded the Harlon Hill Trophy emblematic of the best player from the Division II ranks in his senior year.

The 2023 season was his first with the Bears. In that year, he appeared in five games and four as a starter. In 2024, he appeared in four games and did not start any of them as the Bears, long a cornerstone of the NFL, recorded a 5-12 regular season record.

The two-year contract extension carries through the 2027 season.

Bears’ general manager Ryan Poles called attention to Bagent’s hard work, being a great competitor and teammate as well as a catalyst in the locker room and positive influence throughout the organization.

Head coach Ben Johnson praised Bagent and called attention to the respect he has gained from his teammates. Johnson said the Bears are constructing a team by belief and built on hard work. He completed a statement to the press and public by saying there is no better example of hard work than Bagent.

Chicago will begin the 2025 regular season with Caleb Williams as its starting quarterback.

The storied franchise was long the cornerstone of the league, having been influenced by owner George (Papa Bear) Halas and earning the nickname “Monsters of the Midway.” Chicago plays its home games at venerable Soldier Field, having once staged home games at Wrigley Field, home of the baseball’s Chicago Cubs.

The Bears once owned the NFL title, having won the league’s championship game in that season with a 73-0 tour de force victory.

Bagent started at Shepherd as a true freshman and played from 2018 through 2022, as college football recessed from any action in 2020 because of COVID-19.

The Bears and the NFL begin the 2025 season this weekend with a full slate of games. The NFL now has a 17-game regular season before beginning the annual round of playoff games and completing any season with the Super Bowl.