TYSON BAGENT, BEARS BLITZ TITANS, 24-15
Bears backup quarterback Tyson Bagent and wide receiver Zavion Thomas connected on a 97-yard touchdown on Chicago’s opening play and didn’t stop there in a 24-15 win over the Titans in Nashville on Saturday.
Thomas, a rookie third-round pick, made his preseason debut and racked up 140 yards on five receptions with a 39-yard punt return. Bagent was almost perfect as a passer — he completed 16 of 17 throws for 208 yards and two touchdowns — and the Bears (2-1) overcame his fumble on a busted run play in a game that featured mostly reserves in the closing preseason action for both clubs.
On first down from their own 3, Bagent dropped back into the end zone and locked onto Thomas split wide to his right. Thomas hesitated and the Titans’ secondary froze. With the pocket shrinking around him, Bagent let the ball go as Thomas, who was the third-fastest player timed at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine, shifted gears. He came back for the underthrown pass, then burst into the open, sprinting down the sideline for the touchdown.
Bears wide receiver Maurice Alexander caught Bagent’s other TD toss and had a game-high seven receptions for 50 yards.
The Bears led 14-9 at halftime. Chicago added Roschon Johnson’s 3-yard touchdown run and a Cairo Santos field goal in the third quarter to push their lead to 24-9. Johnson had 15 carries for 52 yards.
With starting quarterback Cam Ward and backup Mitch Trubisky rested, quarterback Will Levis, fighting for a roster spot ahead of NFL cuts, started for the Titans. He played the entire first half and led three scoring drives (all field goals).
Running back D’Ernest Johnson scored Tennessee’s only touchdown on a 9-yard run with 3:50 to play and celebrated with the “Choppa City Juke,” an homage to former Titans running back Chris Johnson.
Titans kicker Joey Slye made all three of his field goal tries, including a 56-yarder, his fifth this preseason of at least 50 yards.
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Offensive tackle Broderick Jones is being acquired by the Dallas Cowboys, who executed a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers in a swap that would also involve three total 2027 draft picks.
Jones, a 2023 first-round pick, has 38 career starts but was working with the reserves in Pittsburgh during the preseason. He played left tackle and right tackle in Pittsburgh.
The Steelers drafted Max Iheanachor at No. 21 overall in April to play right tackle. He’s been competing with Dylan Cook with 2024 first-round pick Troy Fautanu working at left tackle.
Former Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy, well-versed on the organization’s desire to overstock the offensive line, is entering his first season as Steelers coach.
ESPN reported the trade agreement in place, pending a physical, would send Jones and a 2027 fourth-round pick to the Cowboys for third- and sixth-round picks in the same draft.
Terence Steele was the primary right tackle for the Cowboys last season. Dallas has been pleased with 2024 first-round pick Tyler Guyton in the preseason.
If Jones winds up taking over at right tackle, Dallas could start four first-round picks around center Cooper Beebe.
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The Jacksonville Jaguars are acquiring second-year quarterback Quinn Ewers from the Miami Dolphins, according to multiple reports.
The Jaguars are sending the Dolphins their sixth-round pick in 2028, per ESPN.
Ewers was the Dolphins’ seventh-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. The Texas product went on to appear in four games for the Dolphins last season, including three starts, as he threw for 622 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions that netted an 85.5 passer rating.
The 23-year-old adds depth behind starter Trevor Lawrence in Jacksonville. Veteran Nick Mullens, 31, owns a 5-15 record as a starter while Carter Bradley and Joey Aguilar have not taken a regular-season NFL snap.
The Dolphins have three quarterbacks left on their depth chart: offseason acquisition Malik Willis, Cam Miller and Mark Gronowski.
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The Baltimore Ravens are trading defensive tackle C.J. Okoye to the New York Giants in exchange for a 2028 seventh-round draft pick, NFL Network reported on Saturday.
The deal reunites the former NFL International Player Pathway participant with New York coach John Harbaugh, whom Okoye played for in Baltimore last season.
Okoye, 24, played in 13 games (no starts) with the Ravens in 2025, accumulating 15 tackles, one quarterback hit and one pass defensed in his first NFL campaign.
The 6-foot-6, 370-pound Okoye hails from Nigeria. He joined the Los Angeles Chargers through the IPPP in 2023 and spent two seasons on their practice squad.
Linebacker Bobby Okereke is signing a one-year contract with the Carolina Panthers, multiple media outlets reported on Saturday.
Financial terms were not disclosed for Okereke, who was released by the New York Giants earlier this year in a cost-cutting move.
Okereke, 30, led New York in tackles in two of his three seasons with the team, including 143 stops in 2025 and 149 in 2023.
He added one sack, two interceptions and one fumble recovery in 17 games (all starts) for the Giants in 2025.
Okereke has recorded 805 tackles, 7.5 sacks, seven interceptions and 11 forced fumbles in 110 career games (95 starts) with the Colts (2019-22) and Giants. Indianapolis drafted him in the third round in 2019.
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The Buffalo Bills are releasing punter Mitch Wishnowsky and wide receiver/kick returner Mecole Hardman Jr., ESPN reported Saturday.
Rookie Tommy Doman Jr., a seventh-round draft pick out of Florida, won the punter job in training camp.
Wishnowsky spent six seasons with the San Francisco 49ers before his one season with Buffalo in 2025. He averaged 45.3 yards on 38 punts in 13 games.
Hardman won three Super Bowls with the Kansas City Chiefs, who selected him in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft. He appeared in just two games for the Bills last season and returned two punts for 4 total yards and gained 61 yards on his one kickoff return.
The deadline for teams to reduce their roster to the 53-player maximum is 6 p.m. ET on Sunday.
–The Miami Dolphins announced a dozen players were waived: cornerback Alex Austin; running backs Coleman Bennett and Donovan Edwards; tackle Kevin Cline; edge Seth Coleman-Lyles; tight end Ethan Conner, inside linebackers Stephen Dix Jr. and Jaheim Thomas; defensive linemen Alex Huntley and Cam Rice; safety Louis Moore; wide receiver Theo Wease Jr.
–The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are waiving quarterback Connor Bazelak, who spent part of last season with the team, NBC Sports reported. Also being waived are running back Barika Kpeenu, tight end Kenny Fletcher, guard Nash Hutmacher, defensive tackle Travis Shaw and linebacker John Bullock.
Veteran QB Jake Browning is on the Tampa Bay roster to back up starter Baker Mayfield.
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