Three takeaways from Bears' preseason opener vs. Dolphins

With few of the Bears’ and Dolphins’ best players on the field for much or any of their preseason opener Sunday, they wandered to a 24-24 tie. It was the Bears’ first preseason tie since a 9-9 game against the Dolphins in 1973.

Here’s how they got there:

Who is QB2?

The battle to be Caleb Williams’ backup isn’t over. Tyson Bagent played the first half and finished 13 of 19 for 103 yards with a touchdown and an interception for a 77.3 passer rating, while veteran Case Keenum completed 8 of 10 passes for 80 yards and two touchdowns for a 139.6 rating.

Big stand

In Dolphins starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s only action, he drove them to first-and-goal at the 8-yard line, but couldn’t score. On fourth down at the 1, linebackers Noah Sewell and Ruben Hyppolite stuffed running back Jaylen Wright for a three-yard loss.

Ending with a fizzle

Each team had two chances to win at the end, but neither made it very far with the bottom of the depth chart. Bears coach Ben Johnson bypassed a 53-yard field goal with 1:54 left in favor of going for it on fourth-and-three, but failed. The Dolphins then got to the Bears’ 40-yard line but went backward. The Bears had it again at the Dolphins’ 41 with 26 seconds left before ending up in fourth-and-15. On the final play, the Dolphins made it to the 21-yard line with a lateral play before the Bears ended it.