CHICAGO (104.3 The Score) –A remarkable thing happened late in the second quarter of the Bears' 23-12 victory over the Jets on Sunday at Soldier Field.
Ben Johnson played it safe.
The Bears faced fourth-and-2 at the Jets' 12-yard line with 2:32 left in the first half. They led 7-3 at the time but had controlled the line of scrimmage and the clock the way they would all day. Given the aggressive Johnson's aversion to punting and kicking field goals since he arrived from Dan Campbell's staff in Detroit, calling Cairo Santos onto the field qualified as quite a surprise. Whether Johnson remembered it that way or not postgame, his conservative call to kick also came the series following a Tyson Bagent interception.
"That was a two-score game going into a three-score game, right?'' Johnson answered when I asked him about it.
Not exactly. It was 7-3, Bears, late in the second quarter. When another reporter had a fair follow-up about fourth-and-2 usually being a "green light in the Ben Johnson coaching philosophy,'' Johnson responded, "A two-score game makes it a three-score game in the second half.''
Johnson's fuzzy memory aside, taking the points reflected a coach willing to adjust his thinking to game conditions. Something made him take the gimme and kick the field goal.
This is significant progress. Johnson avoided getting too cute, putting the reward ahead of the unnecessary risk and taking what he needed to get the job done.
It was that kind of day.
Just get the job done against a lesser opponent that becomes more dangerous the longer you let them stay close. The Jets will likely lose double-digit games this season, again. This Bears effort was more workmanlike than wowing, survival more than celebration, revealing a team becoming as mentally strong as it is physically capable.
The Bears dominated the Jets because they could, using force more than anything too fancy and doing what good NFL teams do: avoid the letdown. Sandwiched between a magical Monday Night Football moment and Packers week, the Jets game represented an opportunity to lose focus. Instead, Johnson locked in with his laser stare and the Bears won using practicality with their backup quarterback and running back leading the way.
As a result, the Bears had more first downs (34) than the Jets had offensive plays (32). They controlled the clock for 42 minutes, 45 seconds and dominated the Jets defense for 232 rushing yards. The Bears didn’t punt in a game for the first time in 12 years. Once the Bears got the ball back with 9:07 left in the game, they ran out the clock by running it down the Jets' throats – the second straight game the starting offense ended the game by taking a knee.
"We take a ton of pride two weeks in a row we were able to find a way to finish,” Johnson said.
Kyle Monangai, getting the bulk of the work after D’Andre Swift fumbled, rushed for 146 yards on 30 carries. The last time Monangai had that many carries was his senior year at Rutgers in 2024 when he had 31.
“He's the same guy every day,” Johnson said of his second-year running back.
Swift added 58 yards on 15 carries but didn't touch the ball after fumbling with 8:46 left in the third quarterback. Roschon Johnson – remember him? – took advantage of his unexpected playing time by gaining 16 yards on four carries, his first since Oct. 19, 2025.
But the most ballyhooed backup, of course, was Bagent, making his first start since Nov. 9, 2023. Though technically, Case Keenum started the game with Bagent split out wide, a gesture by Johnson that was a nod to speculation during the week over a quarterback debate that never was debatable in his mind. He kidded that it was equivalent to Keenum "throwing out the first pitch” and "passing the torch.”
It was Keenum, in fact, who Johnson entrusted to officially give Bagent the good news that he was starting after a recent bout in concussion protocol. On Wednesday morning, Bagent said Keenum called him to come to Halas Hall early for a meeting where he surprised him by confirming the switch. Publicly, of course, both quarterbacks confirmed nothing about the depth chart.
"I've been lying to you all week,” Bagent said postgame, smiling.
The Division-II product from Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, W.Va. had every reason to savor the moment. On Sunday, his dad, Travis, celebrated his 50th birthday surrounded by family and friends. The opposing quarterback was Geno Smith, a record-setting college quarterback at West Virginia, the team Bagent grew up rooting for in the Mountaineer State.
There was no better day to reopen The Bagency in Chicago.
“A full-circle moment,” Bagent said.
If all that wasn't enough to fill Bagent's cup, immediately after the victory the Soldier Field speakers played John Denver's "Take Me Home, Country Roads,” a West Virginia anthem that capped a day worthy of being put to music.
"Don't ask me questions like this, I already told you I will start crying,” Bagent said. "It meant the world to hear a song like that.”
Emotions aside, it meant the Bears got what they paid for in Bagent, who signed a two-year, $10-million contract extension through 2027 to remove the doubt from days like Sunday. Bagent did what every backup quarterback essentially is asked to do in the NFL: avoid being the reason your team loses.
Bagent completed 25 of 34 passes for 268 yards and an 83.9 passer rating. Statistics will show the Jets intercepted Bagent only once even if three interceptions were negated by penalties. On the pick that counted, Bagent telegraphed a pass intended for tight end Colston Loveland and safety Minkah Fitzpatrick plucked the floater out of the air for the Jets' first interception in 21 games. The arm strength that’s easiest to question about Bagent's overall game looked adequate, at best, on those shaky throws.
Bagent's overall numbers depicted a streamlined, quick, ball-control approach that Johnson now has utilized in two straight victories. Beating the Eagles with Keenum provided more oohs and aahs than beating the Jets with Bagent, but the circumstances were as different as the stages. Keenum's performance was louder than Bagent's, the difference between spectacular and solid. His connection with Rome Odunze stood out – Odunze caught six passes for 94 yards but Bagent spread the ball around among nine receivers.
"I thought he played really well today, efficient with the football,” Johnson said. "I thought he had a great job with the operation.”
Objectively, Bagent didn’t play well enough to convince anyone that he's one of the 32 best quarterbacks in the league – a common offseason descriptor of his talents. Heck, Bagent didn't even do enough to prove he was better than Keenum, the backup to the backup who dazzled on Monday Night Football.
But Bagent was shaking off rust too and did enough to win, the primary job requirement for any No. 2 quarterback. It marked the 10th time since 1984 the Bears have won games in one season with three different quarterbacks, according to ChicagoBears.com – and they've only played four games.
"We've got tremendous depth throughout this roster,” Johnson said.
Which brings us to the Bears defense, a fast, ferocious bunch that again held an opponent to a single touchdown and continues to carry this supposed offensive juggernaut. The Jets scored on a 58-yard touchdown pass from Smith to former Illini quarterback Isaiah Williams, who beat Tyrique Stevenson. Aside from that breakdown, the Bears got off the field early and often, limiting the Jets to a meager 157 total yards. Linebacker Devin Bush received a game ball, Austin Booker and Dayo Odeyingbo again each had a sack and rookie safety Dillon Thieneman led the Bears in tackles for a fourth straight game with seven.
The Bears defense has finished the first month of the season without a single defender that will cause insomnia for offensive coordinators, yet Dennis Allen's unit is one of the biggest reasons for a 3-1 start. Who are the game-wreckers on the Bears defensive depth chart? Good luck finding one.
"You could call them the no name defense at this point,” Johnson said.
You can call the Bears a team getting better at doing whatever it takes to win the game in front of them.
David Haugh hosts the Haugh & Payton Show from 5:30-10 a.m. weekdays on 104.3 The Score.
