GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Bears plan to have embattled cornerback Tyrique Stevenson active against the Cardinals on Sunday, but not as a starter, a sourced said. Stevenson will begin the game on the bench as discipline for checking out mentally on a play that cost the Bears a win against the Commanders last week.
Coach Matt Eberflus dodged questions all week about whether Stevenson would face discipline, especially a reduction in playing time. The Bears have some margin to do that given how well backup cornerbacks Terell Smith, Josh Blackwell and Jaylon Jones have played.
Stevenson put his status in jeopardy with a major mistake at the end of the Bears’ 18-15 loss to the Commanders last week. On the final play, as quarterback Jayden Daniels prepared to throw a Hail Mary pass to the end zone from midfield, Stevenson was yelling at fans and had his back to the play as it began.
When he realized what was happening, Stevenson abandoned his assignment — "We've practiced that play a hundred times," Eberflus lamented" — and hurt the Bears' chances of stopping the desperate heave. He ran to the crowd of players at the 2-yard line and batted the pass, but the ball deflected to wide receiver Noah Brown in the end zone for the game-winning touchdown.
Stevenson was supposed to be boxing out Brown so safety Kevin Byard could leap for the deflection. Byard said he couldn't get a clean jump at the ball because Brown was pushing him in the back. Had Stevenson been in the right spot, he could've kept Brown away from Byard and been in ideal position to prevent the ball from ricocheting to Brown.
