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LAKE FOREST — Tyson Bagent will start his fourth consecutive game against the Carolina Panthers on Thursday Night Football with Justin Fields listed as doubtful for the prime-time matchup.
Bears coach Matt Eberflus told reporters on Wednesday afternoon that Fields has been “progressing everyday but is not medically cleared yet, and Bagent will be our starter” on Thursday night.
Nathan Peterman will be the backup.
Fields was listed as doutbtful after Wednesday’s practice, but he did throw passes.
Eberflus was asked about Fields’ limitations, but the Bears’ coach didn’t identify any specifics.
“He’s getting better,” Eberflus said. “Accuracy is improving. He’s throwing it better. He’s starting to do more and more, so we’ll see where it goes. Right now we are listing him as doubtful, and we’ll see where it goes from there.”
Eberflus was asked specifically about grip strength being a problem, but he said “it’s everything.”
Despite Eberflus naming Bagent the starter, Fields hasn’t officially been ruled out of the Thursday night game against Carolina.
“We’ll see where it goes,” Eberflus said. “The chances are doubtful, 51% that’s he’s in or out, and it’s gonna be, we’ll see where it is. We got a little time left. Again, we’ll declare him out when he is out. Right now we’re still listing him as doubtful.”
There is also a possibility that Fields may go through some pregame work tomorrow night, but it all depends what happens in the next 24 hours, according to Eberflus.
If this matchup was on Sunday as opposed to Thursday night, Eberflus said that it “was a good possibility” that Fields could’ve played.
“Short weeks are hard,” Eberflus said. “They are hard.”
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