The Chicago Bears have started to make roster cuts ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, which includes the surprising release of quarterback P.J. Walker.
Walker, who signed a two-year deal this offseason, was expected to serve as Justin Fields’ backup this season. But Walker notably struggled during training camp and the preseason.
It certainly didn’t help that undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent shined with his opportunities, and he seems in line to serve as Fields’ backup heading into the season. Although, it’ll be interesting to see if Chicago elects to carry a third quarterback in Nathan Peterman or simply roll with Fields and Bagent.
As you can imagine, Bears fans had plenty to say about Walker’s release and what that means for Bagent as QB2. Safe to say, this move didn’t come as a complete shock. The writing has been on the wall for a couple of weeks.
Here’s how Bears Twitter reacted to the surprising release of Walker:
I had expected the #Bears to carry three QB’s — Fields, Walker & Bagent.
The fact that the staff felt comfortable with Bagent as QB2 is a great sign that the UDFA has showcased his skills both on the field, in practice & in the meeting room.
Congratulations to #17. 👏🏼 https://t.co/FTHraQ8Nqy
— Frank Grizzly (@FrankGrizzly) August 27, 2023
Bagent SZN https://t.co/7ORcPOImFp
— Patrick K. Flowers (@PatrickKFlowers) August 27, 2023
Tyson Bagent #QB2Season https://t.co/TOMWfGnYZP
— Aaron Leming (@AaronLemingNFL) August 27, 2023
#DaBears Getting Tyson Bagent will save them a lot of money over the first 3 Years of the UDFA Deal.
Smart Move that Paid Off Big Time.
— The Irish Bears Show (@IrishBearsShow) August 27, 2023
The Secret Bagent has infiltrated himself into the QB2 spot 👀
Absolutely love it. Feel like we’ve been asking this organization for a while to get a decent developmental backup QB and we got one pic.twitter.com/8SN8JKQPsN
— DaWindyCity Productions (@dwcprodz) August 27, 2023
Writing was on the wall after a disappointing camp and preseason
Wish him the best of luck though! https://t.co/jHkWAELd54
— DaWindyCity Productions (@dwcprodz) August 27, 2023
So Tyson Bagent did enough to earn a spot on the #Bears roster it looks like.
— Zack Pearson (@Zack_Pearson) August 27, 2023
Impressed that Ryan Poles was willing to admit a mistake this quickly. Ryan Pace would have never.
Tyson Bagent is officially QB2 and Nathan Peterman will head to the practice squad. https://t.co/DDDjyvJwp8
— Bill Zimmerman (@BillTZimmerman) August 27, 2023
Obviously not a complete shock. But the staff doesn't care how much money you're making. If you're not playing well, you won't have a spot.
Hope Walker finds another opportunity though. https://t.co/CokGisvO18
— Brendan Sugrue (@BrendanSugrue) August 27, 2023
Huge message to the locker room. This is great for bagent. Bad for PJ who is all intents and purposes a great dude. Good luck to him in his future. Someone will pick him up. https://t.co/gtORQdBl8l
— Nate Flint (@Nate_Flint) August 27, 2023
Bagent made it very difficult on the coaching staff, and PJ Walker did himself no favors.
Front Office clearly didn’t want to risk passing Bagent through waivers, and so Walker is the first surprise cut of camp for #Bears https://t.co/oLiTgMEncj
— Chris Dougherty (@christalksports) August 27, 2023
Tyson Bagent earned that QB2 job. Awesome to see from a UDFA! https://t.co/Xus8giOpnP
— Nick Whalen (@_NickWhalen) August 27, 2023
Poles actually did it… https://t.co/XEWw22UYSc pic.twitter.com/cSCcB1Usia
— EJ 🇺🇸 (@itsmine49) August 27, 2023
A little surprising but not shocking.
Bears clearly believe in competition in camp, and Tyson Bagent clearly outperformed Walker. https://t.co/1j5gdxe5CN— Matt Zahn (@mattzahnsports) August 27, 2023
Tyson Bagent wins the #2 job!? Love to see good football get rewarded! https://t.co/RtzUaZiyYY
— Ben Cummins (@BenCumminsFF) August 27, 2023
Respect the hell out of poles for owning up to a mistake so quickly https://t.co/mNNU0zNuoN
— David Kieso (Fields 2023 NFL MVP) (@KiesoDavid) August 27, 2023
Yea it was always gonna end that way for poor PJ. He’s a really good kid, but he can’t play at this level https://t.co/ep8tujhRA9
— Muzz (@Mussallem) August 27, 2023
Omg they actually did it 😲😲 https://t.co/hN0obDAuVe
— Ean Goldstein (@eangoldstein) August 27, 2023
This is just as much about PJ not playing well as it was about Bagent's positive play.
Now #DaBears are in an interesting position. If Fields has to miss a ame, are they going to trust Bagent to play? https://t.co/SygsMAYck1
— Mason West (@WestSportsPT) August 27, 2023
First thought on the PJ Walker cut…I’m nervous when the backups have more in common with each other than they do the starting QB.
— Nate Atkins (@Nate_Atkins3) August 27, 2023
Walker being released means Tyson Bagent is officially QB #2 & it also sends a message from Poles that it’s about performance & not just money
— 79th & Halas Podcast (@79thAndHalas) August 27, 2023
Poles and Flus saw they made a mistake with Walker and are cutting the cord. Better off doing that than wasting everyone’s time because of $. Ballsy move
— Greg Gabriel (@ggabefootball) August 27, 2023
Wow! Didn’t see the #Bears cutting PJ Walker.
He wasn’t great in the preseason, but figured the money would keep him around. Good on Ryan Poles for admitting a mistake and not letting ego get in the way.
— Jacob Infante (@jacobinfante24) August 27, 2023
I’m not surprised. PJ Walker sounded resigned to this fate when we spoke to him in the locker room after the #Bears game Sat. He said, “I’m not an idiot. I can read the room.” https://t.co/CTGa2CSihK
— Mark Grote (@markgrotesports) August 27, 2023
This encourages me. Walker, by all accounts, had a poor training camp and objectively played poorly in the preseason. Juxtapose that to the development of Tyson Bagent, and it's clear that this is the right decision. Kudos to Ryan Poles, Matt Eberflus, and Luke Getsy. #Bears https://t.co/D8AsH3Kzb2
— TW (@Tylow237) August 27, 2023
I mean he was definitively the worst of the QBs in the preseason but wow https://t.co/CAaAY28SNU
— Payton J. Havermann (@paytonisnotroll) August 27, 2023
Tyson Bagent SZN is here https://t.co/QYMqVdSHBa
— Henny ♎️ (@CamronSanto) August 27, 2023
PJ Walker has been Released. The Clear Indication that Tyson Bagent is QB2.
Gotta Earn The Job . #DaBears didn’t care that PJ had guaranteed Money. pic.twitter.com/9WwW7yE2km
— The Irish Bears Show (@IrishBearsShow) August 27, 2023
PJ Walker was a great dude. Wish him well. Tyson Bagent out played him by a mile. This was an obvious choice and the #Bears made it.
— Mark Carman (@thecarm) August 27, 2023
The Bears released PJ Walker and Alex Leatherwood. Some say they are missing on moves but I say they are cutting their losses.
Running a team when the best player plays and makes the team regardless of money in the long run will pay dividends. #DaBears #Bears
— Clay Harbor (@clayharbs82) August 27, 2023
PJ Walker needed to go https://t.co/voshb2WK8W
— Mike (@Mike__Dhcf) August 27, 2023
The #Bears made the right decision cutting PJ Walker. His “experience” wasn't going to help Justin Fields see the field better. Tyson Bagent is an exciting backup, and he could be groomed into a future starter somewhere.
— Jordan Sigler (@JordanSig) August 27, 2023
@pjwalker_5 Wish you nothing but the best PJ. Hope you have an amazing week and do big things. God Bless!
— Mitch Sutherland (@BestCrawlPeriod) August 27, 2023
PJ Walker fumbled his backup spot for real 😭
— Stanley Easley (@Stanley_Easley7) August 27, 2023
Damn. Didn’t think the Bears actually would do it, but PJ Walker has been cut
— Chicago Sports (@ChicagoSports99) August 27, 2023
I really thought the Bears would keep PJ Walker as QB2 for his experience even though his play was lack luster. Looks like Tyson Bagent made too big of an impression to keep him around.
Glad I was wrong. https://t.co/DVEHWqkXTK
— IDF (@IDF162) August 27, 2023
