CHICAGO — Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams carried lofty expectations coming into his third season, and they only grew when he engineered a 59-point season-opening win.

That all came crashing to a halt with 7 minutes, 27 seconds left in the fourth quarter Sunday in a 9-3 loss to the Minnesota Vikings at Soldier Field when Williams grimaced in pain and grabbed his right hamstring after an aborted scramble on first-and-goal from the 6-yard line.

“As a teammate and as a good friend of mine, the connection we’ve built over the years, it’s super unfortunate to see him go down,” backup QB Tyson Bagent said.

That raises the question: With the offense now in Bagent’s hands for an indeterminate time, do the Bears need to temper those lofty goals?

“No, absolutely not,” tackle Theo Benedet said. “I mean, I think we’re really fortunate to have Tyson. I think he’s probably the best backup in the league. So we know what we have to do as a team, and we know we’ll continue to lean on our running game too to help him.”

Bagent assumed control of the offense on second-and-goal from the 6. He scanned the field, then settled for a 1-yard dump-off to D’Andre Swift. His second attempt fell incomplete, and the Vikings’ Isaiah Rodgers blocked Cairo Santos’ 23-yard field goal attempt.

On the ensuing possession, Will Reichard kicked a 39-yard field goal to give the Vikings a 9-3 lead.

Bagent had a final series to pull off a comeback, but down six points, he needed nothing less than a touchdown.

With exactly one minute left, he connected with Luther Burden III for 6 yards, then found Burden deep over the middle for 18 before clocking the ball.

Bagent executed another completion with a lob deep right to Rome Odunze for 21 yards, leaving the Bears with 31 seconds on the clock.

Bagent drove the Bears to the Vikings 12 with an 8-yard completion to Burden, but Rodgers broke up a second look to Burden near the left pylon.

On fourth-and-2 with one second left, Bagent searched for an open receiver, but Dallas Turner blew through Colston Loveland’s block and sacked Bagent to dash the Bears’ hopes.

“It got kind of hairy for me, but unacceptable on my end,” Bagent said. “Can’t take a sack on the last play of the game — got to at least give somebody a chance.”

Odunze added about the final series, “We were at odds to begin with, but maybe make a few more plays here and there to get us in the zone. But at the end of the day, sometimes it doesn’t work out.”

Ben Johnson credited Bagent for finding big plays in the passing game in a hurry-up situation.

“Tyson comes in, he makes some big throws for us,” Johnson said. “I thought he operated it really well and put us in a position.”

Unless Williams’ injury is minor, the Bears may have to work out the foreseeable future with Bagent. Williams had proved to be very durable, having never missed a start in 35 regular-season and two playoff games.

However, the Bears prepared for the eventuality that fortune runs out for most quarterbacks.

In August 2025, Bagent signed a two-year, $10 million extension — life-changing money for the Martinsburg, W.Va., native and his family that prompted him to fight back tears during a news conference discussing the deal.

“I don’t really know anybody back at home with any money,” he said at the time.

In 13 appearances since 2023, Bagent has completed 104 of 158 passes (65.8%) for 971 yards, three touchdowns and six interceptions. But he hasn’t started a game since the four in his rookie year in ’23.

Bagent has mainly shined in the preseason. This summer, he went 13 of 22 for 169 yards, one touchdown and an interception in the preseason opener against the Cleveland Browns. He missed the next game against the Cincinnati Bengals with a hamstring injury. Bagent was especially crisp in the preseason finale against the Titans in Nashville, Tenn., completing 16 of 17 attempts for 208 yards and two touchdowns.

“I called plays for him all preseason, so we’ll be fine,” Johnson said.

On Sunday, Bagent’s teammates rallied around him.

“He’s very poised,” Kalif Raymond said. “He’s a guy that puts in the work. He’s always going to be ready for the moment, you can tell by the way he works in practice.”

Said Odunze: “Man, Tyson’s a professional, he’s a vet. He knows exactly what he needs to do. As soon as he gets in there, he prepares like he’s a starting quarterback every single week in, week out. So something I’m not worried about.”

Added Benedet: “He’s the ultimate competitor. And I think it rubs off on the rest of the guys when you’re in there with them.”

Benedet said he built a rapport with Bagent during training camp by working extensively together on the second unit.

“So I feel like me and him have a really good feel for kind of where he is in the pocket and how he operates through it, and the other guys will pick it up quickly because that’s just the kind of player he is.”

Bagent said the only difference for him will be that his practice reps will go up. As the primary backup, he has remained focused on the possibility he could take the reins under circumstances such as these.

“I feel great,” Bagent said. “I feel like I have a good team around me, good coaching staff, so I’m ready to roll.”

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