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On Oct. 22, 2022, Tyson Bagent passed for 296 yards and three touchdowns to lead Division II Shepherd University to a 47-14 win over West Chester College in front of 2,123 fans in West Chester, Pa.

Exactly one year later, the 23-year-old is expected to be the Chicago Bears' starting quarterback when they host the Las Vegas Raiders before a crowd of about 60,000 at Soldier Field.

The biggest difference between the two scenarios?

"The details, a lot of details," Bagent said. "Obviously, the team I'm going against Sunday is a little bit better than West Chester. There are quite a bit more details than there were a year ago. Other than that, you just play hard and operate in sync with the guys you've got."

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Regardless of what transpires Sunday and beyond, Bagent is already a success story worthy of a Disney movie. After signing with the Bears as an undrafted free agent, he beat out presumed backup P.J. Walker for a roster spot in training camp and the preseason and later leapfrogged veteran Nathan Peterman for the No. 2 spot on the depth chart.

When Justin Fields exited last Sunday's game against the Vikings with a dislocated right thumb, Bagent made his NFL debut, completing 10 of 14 passes for 83 yards. The Martinsburg, Va., native committed two turnovers but also engineered an impressive 77-yard drive that he capped with his first pro touchdown on a 1-yard sneak.

A week later, with Fields not expected to play, Bagent is preparing for his first pro start. Given his humble background, how is he not overwhelmed by the task at hand?

"I think my life has been planned out for me ahead of time," Bagent said. "I think everything that has happened and will happen was already set in stone to happen. And I think coming from where I come from, I've pretty much beat every odd that there was for me, so I've got nothing to lose. I'm going to go out there and fight with these guys to the death and try to stack up as many wins as I can until we get Justin back."

Bagent has beaten the odds in large part due to his unrelenting preparation and attention to detail.

"If you're not the fastest guy and you're not the best athlete on the field, as long as you know where you're going and can play all positions on the field or know what everybody's doing, you're usually going to operate a little bit better than guys that might be a little bit better than you physically," Bagent said.

"I kind of learned it [in college]. And then especially at this level, everybody's really smart and really fast, so really understanding what's going on around me has been the only real focal point since I've been here."

Bagent wasn't just a big fish in a small bowl at Shepherd; he was more like "Otto" in the children's book "A Fish Out of Water," growing and growing and growing. Playing in 53 games over five seasons, he set the all-time record for most TD passes across all NCAA divisions with 159. Bagent won the Harlon Hill Trophy as Division II National Player of the Year in 2021 after passing for 5,000 yards and 53 touchdowns. In 2022, he was named Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East Offensive Player of the Year after throwing for 4,580 yards and 41 TDs.

While impressive, Bagent knew that those accomplishments guaranteed him nothing at the next level. It's why the opportunity he's receiving with the Bears "means everything" to him. On Wednesday, he told reporters about a conversation he had with a close friend after playing his last college game.

"We were kind of talking about, 'Hey, no matter how good or bad this goes at the next level, there is a very big chance that maybe you make the team, but you might never get to start a game ever again in your whole life,'" Bagent said. "That's just kind of how the apple falls from the tree sometimes.

"But to look where I'm at and to look how everything has kind of fallen into place, just nothing but extreme gratitude and just feeling super blessed to be that kind of motivational role to the younger people in my family—be that person they can look up to—and just really motivation for everybody that may be at a smaller level and all the people back home."

The Chicago Cubs expected that Craig Breslow would be poached to run another major-league team at some point. The Cubs also understood that Breslow, a rising executive with a Yale degree and a World Series pedigree, would be selective about his next opportunity.

Just as the Boston Red Sox will have to determine whether Breslow is the right fit, Breslow must be making his own calculations about the pluses and minuses of working at Fenway Park. Breslow has been in advanced discussions with the Red Sox, according to sources familiar with the search process, interviewing for their No. 1 job in baseball operations. That opportunity, however, comes with several complicating factors for any external candidate.

The Red Sox forced out Ben Cherington within two years of their 2013 World Series title. The Red Sox fired Dave Dombrowski less than a year after winning the 2018 World Series. The Red Sox hired Chaim Bloom to rebuild their farm system and manage their major-league payroll, a methodical process that still put them in the 2021 American League Championship Series. The Red Sox then fired Bloom last month with one season remaining on his five-year contract.

Boston will not be a blank canvas. The Red Sox already signaled that Alex Cora will return as manager next season. Their baseball operations department also carries several longtime employees in high-level positions. Two current general managers with New England roots and resumes similar to Breslow’s — Sam Fuld (Philadelphia Phillies) and Brandon Gomes (Los Angeles Dodgers) — declined to interview for the job.

Breslow, 43, grew up in Connecticut and still lives in suburban Boston with his family. After a 12-year career as a left-handed reliever in the majors, Breslow discussed his post-playing options with a select group of teams that included the Cubs, Red Sox and New York Yankees.

Theo Epstein personally recruited Breslow to join the Cubs front office, giving him the chance to learn more about baseball operations and pursue whatever aspects interested him. Breslow started with the Cubs in 2019, a time when the organization was headed toward sweeping changes in scouting and player development. The lack of young pitching talent was a major reason why the Cubs eventually stagnated after winning the 2016 World Series.

Breslow became an authoritative figure in the pitching department, earning a series of promotions that most recently made him an assistant general manager and the senior vice president of pitching. He earned broad responsibilities, overseeing a rebuild of the organization’s pitching development infrastructure, evaluating free agents and staying close to the day-to-day operations of the major-league club.

Breslow has strong relationships with president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer and manager David Ross, who played with Breslow on the Red Sox team that won the 2013 World Series. Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts gives his baseball executives the freedom to allocate resources and structure the department however they see fit. If the Red Sox ultimately decide to hire two executives — but without giving Breslow the top spot and full authority — the Cubs would be well-positioned to make a substantial offer to stay in a job that already carries a lot of clout.

The players always deserve the credit for making it happen, but Breslow’s tenure has seen the Cubs accumulate big gains on the pitching side of the organization. Justin Steele emerged this year as a homegrown Cy Young Award candidate. Kyle Hendricks’ successful comeback involved several collaborative elements within the pitching group. Adbert Alzolay and Javier Assad, two international free agents who took years to develop into contributors, helped the Cubs stay in playoff contention until the penultimate day of the season.

Jordan Wicks, a 2021 first-round pick, made his major-league debut in August and won four games down the stretch. Cade Horton, a 2022 first-round pick, is viewed as one of the sport’s best pitching prospects. The Cubs now have a top-tier farm system, a bright future and unfinished business.

Breslow is already on the kind of trajectory that put Chris Young in charge of the Texas Rangers. Young, 44, is a Princeton graduate who pitched in the majors for 13 years before working for Major League Baseball. Young joined the Rangers as a general manager after the 2020 season and became their No. 1 baseball executive toward the end of the 2022 season. Young helped lead the turnaround that remade the Rangers as a World Series contender.

This is a good look for the Cubs organization. Either the Cubs helped develop a talented executive to the point of running another iconic franchise or they created such a good situation that a valued employee is not in a rush to leave.

(Top photo of Craig Breslow at the 2023 Red Sox Winter Weekend: Billie Weiss / Boston Red Sox / Getty Images)

It doesn't appear Justin Fields has a permanent future with the Bears after this season.

Now, with a thumb injury leaving his timetable uncertain, it feels like a separation between the third-year quarterback and his native team is on the horizon.

In the event of a trade, The Athletic dutifully crafted a mock trade they would like to see (not one they think will happen) happen for Fields in the future. Of course, they chalked up a trade in line with the predominant rumor of Fields heading back to his hometown to unite with the Atlanta Falcons.

The Athletic's Jeff Howe drafted this trade: "Bears trade QB Justin Fields to Falcons for 2024 second-round pick, 2025 conditional third-round pick and QB Taylor Heinicke."

"Remember, these are trades we want to see — not necessarily those we expect to happen.," Howe wrote. "The Bears are tracking toward the No. 1 pick in the draft, either with their own selection or from the Panthers, so they’re in play for USC’s Caleb Williams or North Carolina’s Drake Maye. With major changes likely on the horizon again, it might be best to maximize Fields’ value. Meanwhile, the Falcons were linked to Fields (who’s from Kennesaw, Ga.) before the 2021 draft, and he seems like a pretty solid fit for Arthur Smith’s offense.

"Fields’ thumb injury complicates this idea, but this would be more of a move with the future in mind. Desmond Ridder has been struggling, and Falcons coach Arthur Smith’s facial expressions Sunday after each interception said a lot about that situation. Again, with a midseason trade, it might be a lot to ask Fields to step in for Ridder relatively soon, but he could get a jump on the offense and position himself to relieve Ridder if necessary, assuming the thumb heals. The extra time in the system could better prepare Fields for 2024."

Fields' thumb injury throws a wrench into the Bears' plans to fully evaluate Fields under center. To make things worse, he was in the middle of an absolute tear. He threw for 617 yards and eight touchdowns in a two-game span against the Denver Broncos and the Washington Commanders.

However, Fields didn't appear to carry that momentum into their most recent contest against the Minnesota Vikings. Fields threw for 58 yards and one interception on 6-of-10 completions before exiting the game with his thumb injury. In his second drive, Tyson Bagent threw for more yards than Fields had in the entirety of his game.

For once, the Bears' defense impressed, holding the Vikings to 12 points for the game. But, Fields couldn't get anything going with the Bears' offense and a Bagent strip-sack fumble returned for a touchdown put the proverbial nails in the coffin for the offense.

So, if Ryan Poles and the front office decide it's time to move on from Fields, they will undoubtedly try and find a new home for him in the trade market.

How would you feel if the Bears earned a package similar to The Athletic's projection?

Las Vegas Raiders:

After suffering a back injury against the Patriots, Jimmy Garoppolo did not practice Wednesday.

With the QB sidelined, both Brian Hoyer and Aidan O'Connell got plenty of opportunities, according to Josh McDaniels.

"We'll kind of see how today goes and then see what the prognosis is and see how practice goes, see how Jimmy is feeling," the head coach said of any game plan for the quarterback position. "So, I think there's a few balls in the air right now that we're going to have to sort through for sure."

T Justin Herron (concussion) and CB Nate Hobbs (ankle) were two other non-participants in practice.

McDaniels noted that Hobbs, who has missed the past three games with an ankle injury, is progressing but "not quite ready" to practice.

Chicago Bears:

Practice Status

Game Status

Bears quarterback Justin Fields ' status for Sunday's home game against the Raiders remains the same, but his long-term prognosis is still being evaluated.

Coach Matt Eberflus reiterated Wednesday what he had said Monday: that Fields likely won't play versus Las Vegas due to a dislocated right thumb that forced him to exit last Sunday's loss to the Vikings in the third quarter.

"It still comes down to the grip strength, where he is later in the week," Eberflus said. "We'll see. Right now, he's working with the trainers and that's progressing well. We'll see where it is. We still think he's doubtful for this week."

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Undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent is expected to start in place of Fields Sunday.

While Eberflus revealed that the swelling in Fields' thumb has "gone down some," the third-year quarterback did not practice Wednesday. Asked if surgery could be a possibility, Eberflus said: "I believe we'll have some clarity later in the week, hopefully. We'll see where it is later in the week. Nothing's off the table, nothing's on the table right now."

Eberflus also reiterated what he had said Monday about right guard Nate Davis : that he is not expected to play against the Raiders after sustaining a high ankle sprain versus the Vikings. Davis did not practice Wednesday and is considered week-to-week.

Eberflus added that rookie running back Roschon Johnson remains in concussion protocol after getting injured against the Commanders and sitting out the Vikings game. But running back Travis Homer is expected to return this week after missing last Sunday's contest with a hamstring injury. Homer was limited in Wednesday's practice.

Wait and see: Eberflus said that safety Eddie Jackson left the Vikings game after a foot injury that had kept him out of the previous three contests "flared up."

The seventh-year pro was limited in Wednesday's workout.

"We're going to see where it is," Eberflus said before practice. "He's going to do individual [drills] and potentially do a little bit more today. We'll see how it goes. We'll see where it is today and then going through the week."

Line changes: The Bears have had to juggle their offensive line due to injuries and performance issues throughout the season, a fluidity that no doubt will continue this week.

Davis is hurt, left tackle Braxton Jones has missed the last four games with a neck injury and Lucas Patrick replaced Cody Whitehair at center in the second half last Sunday.

"This is a week-to-week thing," Eberflus said. "We've got to make sure we're putting the best players in position, and performance is a part of that, of course, and not only during the last game but during the week."

Last Sunday, Whitehair—who switched from left guard to center Oct. 5 against Washington when Patrick exited with a concussion—delivered a few errant shotgun snaps.

Asked if the seven-year veteran had had similar issues in practice, Eberflus said: "It's been a little bit during practice, some. But that's always an issue when you work through and change positions. It's not like it's been glaring. There's been some of it. But we've corrected it, made those adjustments. It's got to be better than what it was on Sunday."

Good energy: Eberflus was pleased with how the defense performed against the Vikings. The unit allowed its fewest touchdowns (1), first downs (12), total yards (220) and passing yards (174) of the season while recording its best third-down percentage (15.4% on 2-of-13 conversions).

The defense was buoyed by the return of defensive backs Jackson, Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon , all of whom had missed multiple games with injuries.

"The guys played with good energy," Eberflus said. "The guys knew what to do. They played fast, played with good fundamentals. I really liked the fundamentals and the detail of how they operated in a lot of different ways. The space tackling was much better. I thought the vision and break on the underneath throws was really good, and that's stuff we worked on. The coaches that I've been around always said you get what you emphasize. We emphasized that a lot last week. I certainly think continuity and getting other players back was helpful, too. I think it's all encompassing."