The Bears closed out their 2026 preseason on a high note, heading to Tennessee and defeating the Titans in a 24-15 matchup. The win on Saturday gave them a 2-1 record to close out the preseason, bumping Ben Johnson’s career record in the preseason to 4-1-1 over his two seasons as Chicago’s head coach.
There’s only so much worth taking away from a preseason game, and while very few concrete conclusions can be made from these games, it’s still exciting to see Bears football back on television. It’s
also been fun to watch some of their young players thriving in spurts and showing signs of what they could become in the NFL.
After a few years doing the instant recaps for WCG, I’m excited to be back working on the day-after notes. These are some of my takeaways from Saturday’s preseason finale for the Bears.
The Zavion Thomas game
After missing the first two preseason games due to injury, third-round wide receiver Zavion Thomas made his Bears preseason on Saturday. His first glimpse of NFL action was incredibly encouraging, as he caught five passes for 140 receiving yards and a touchdown. He also provided some of that high-level returning skill he demonstrated in his collegiate stints with Mississippi State and LSU, returning a punt back 39 yards. Though the Bears followed the return up with a turnover on downs, his return set them up in a favorable position to begin the drive.
In particular, Thomas scored a 97-yard touchdown on a stop-and-go off a pass from Tyson Bagent. It was an impressive debut from the rookie, as he showed off the elite speed that was a major calling card of his game in college. He had some rocky production in college, as his 77.4 PFN WR Impact Score ranked just No. 106 in the FBS last season. That said, his elite athleticism shined in spurts at LSU, and his upside as a big-play weapon for Ben Johnson’s offense showed up in how well he played on Saturday. As someone who was (and, to an extent, still is) skeptical about taking him in the third round, I’m certainly intrigued.
Tyson Bagent looks surgical
After missing Week 2 of the preseason, Tyson Bagent started at quarterback for the Bears against the Titans on Saturday. He played the entire first half in the preseason finale, and after an inconsistent first outing against the Browns, he dominated against Tennessee. He completed 16 of his 17 passing attempts, demonstrating the floor-general archetype of surgical distribution with underneath passes.
Between the two games he played this preseason, Bagent combined going 30-for-40 with a 75.0% completion percentage, 382 passing yards, three passing touchdowns, and an interception for a 119.0 passer rating. This marks the third year in a row that he finished with a passer rating above 100.0 in the preseason, which shows just how tremendous he’s been when given an opportunity.
Terell Smith making some plays in coverage
Another player who made his only preseason appearance on Saturday was Terell Smith, the fourth-year cornerback who missed the entirety of the 2025 season due to injury. He certainly looked the part against the Titans, deflecting each of the two targets he faced in coverage. The 6’0”, 207-pound cornerback looked sticky in 21 snaps of coverage.
The Bears saw plenty of chaotic play out of their secondary last year, and though losing Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon for much of the regular season certainly hurt, it also didn’t help that Smith missed the whole year as arguably their top backup cornerback. Having him available as a depth option should be a big benefit for Chicago going into 2026.
The rookies look good
Between the Bears’ three preseason matchups, they were fortunate enough to see some bright flashes from the players they selected in the 2026 NFL Draft. Dillon Thieneman got under a deep ball and broke up a pass that could’ve resulted in a touchdown against the Titans. Thomas had his aforementioned breakout game. Sam Roush caught five passes for 64 yards, not dropping any of his targets across three games.
Logan Jones had some ups and downs, but he displayed good quickness off the line of scrimmage and a strong anchor in pass protection at center. There was also a learning curve from Malik Muhammad moving inside from his usual perimeter alignment, but he looked sound in zone coverage underneath. And though he was more quiet on Saturday than he was in his first two preseason games, Jordan van den Berg still looked disruptive along the defensive interior. Like I said earlier, you can’t make any concrete conclusions out of these preseason games, but Chicago has to feel pretty good about the early returns it’s getting out of its rookie class.
