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Ben Johnson Reacts To Caleb Williams’ Shocking Chicago Bears, Film Report

The Chicago Bears selected former USC Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams No. 1 in the 2024 NFL Draft. There were things behind the scenes in Williams's rookie season that look to have contributed to the Bears coaching turnover and their 5-12 record.

Cory Pappas

Jan 5, 2025; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) prior to the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
Jan 5, 2025; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) prior to the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images / Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
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The Chicago Bears selected former USC Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams No. 1 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft. In the lead up to the draft with Williams being the consensus first pick, there were rumblings that it may be better for Williams’s career to avoid going to the Bears. 

A new book to be published this upcoming September titled American Kings: A Biography Of The Quarterback by Seth Wickersham dives deeper into this with Williams, his dad, and the Bears.

Football analyst Dan Orlovsky and new Bears coach Ben Johnson reacted to these reports.

Carl Williams: "Chicago is the Place Quarterbacks Go To Die"

Dec 26, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) rolls out of the pocket during the third
Dec 26, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) rolls out of the pocket during the third quarter against the Seattle Seahawks at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Talia Sprague-Imagn Images / Talia Sprague-Imagn Images

Caleb Williams’s father Carl spoke to Wickersham before the 2024 NFL Draft about the Bears and them taking his son. He also reportably told agents in the league he didn’t want Caleb to be with the Bears. 

“Chicago is the place quarterbacks go to die,” Carl Williams said to Wickersham before the 2024 NFL Draft. 

According to the book, Caleb around this time himself even had doubts about being able to succeed in Chicago, citing former Bears offensive coordinator Shane Waldron. Waldron, along with Bears coach Matt Eberflus, were fired midseason during Caleb’s rookie year.  

“Do I want to go there?” Caleb Williams said. “I don’t think I can do it with Waldron.”

After his final season at USC, Williams met with Kevin O’Connell and the Minnesota Vikings. It was a meeting that went very well, with Williams even telling his dad that he wanted to play for them. This would have involved a trade and the Bears were not going to give up, who they thought to be the best player in the entire draft class to a division rival. 

Caleb eventually decided that he wouldn’t be holding out and would go to the Bears, saying he could “do it for this team.” It was a rough rookie campaign for Caleb, who according to the book, told his dad that there would be times that he would be watching film by himself without any coaching instruction. 

“No one tells me what to watch,” Caleb Williams said. “I just turn it on.”

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Dan Orlovsky, Ben Johnson Give Reactions To Caleb Williams Report

May 10, 2025; Lake Forest, IL, USA; Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson walks the field during rookie minicamp at Halas Hall
May 10, 2025; Lake Forest, IL, USA; Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson walks the field during rookie minicamp at Halas Hall. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images / David Banks-Imagn Images

ESPN football analyst and former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky weighed in on social media about some of the early excerpts to come out of the book, such as the Bears allegedly not watching film with Williams during his rookie season. 

“No one taught him what to watch tape wise and how to?,” Orlovsky said. “If that’s true, what a complete joke and total failure by the staff for that young man…This infuriates me!”

It is stunning for a franchise to take a quarterback No. 1 overall and seemingly not put in their full effort to making sure he is in the best position to succeed. Hopefully for Williams and the Bears, this is a thing of the past. 

The Bears hired offensive guru Ben Johnson as coach this offseason. He will look to maximize Williams’ potential in Chicago. Johnson gave his own response on The Herd to the negative reports on the Bears and Williams.

“I don’t know what’s gone on prior to him joining the organization, but he is a very proud Chicago Bear, Johnson said. “He’s really excited to get to work right now and be the best version of himself for 2025.”

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Cory Pappas
CORY PAPPAS

Cory Pappas is sports writer for USC Trojans On SI and Oregon Ducks On SI. Since starting in March of 2024, he has been writing breaking news stories, game previews, game recaps, and more across College Sports, the NFL, MLB, NBA, and Olympics for Total Apex Sports. In addition to writing, Cory is also a sports data scout for Sportradar. He covers live sporting events ranging from college athletics to semi-pro and professional. Before joining the industry, Cory graduated from the University of Oregon in 2022. He ran track for Oregon's club Track and Field team. Before Oregon, he played varsity basketball and track and field in high school in Walnut Creek, CA. Cory is using his lifelong passion for sports and writing together.

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