Bears' Caleb Williams prompts crazed national reaction for Bills performance

In the wake of his play on Sunday night, the national media is also suddenly fawning over Chicago Bears' quarterback Caleb Williams.

Aug 17, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) looks to pass the ball against the Buffalo Bills during the first quarter at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | David Banks-Imagn Images

The old adage about NFL preseason games is that individually they matter, but team-wise they are meaningless. Overreacting to glorified scrimmages is always a dangerous undertaking.

That said, it's difficult for Chicago Bears nation not to be giddy this Monday after watching what Caleb Williams did individually and what their team did to the Buffalo Bills. Williams led an impressive 92-yard touchdown to open the game. The Bears walloped a team that many believe is an AFC contender to play in Super Bowl LX, 38-0.

MORE: Chicago Bears Week 2 preseason report card: Panic turns to cheers

This defense is like the '85 Bears! Caleb is the second coming of ... Jay Cutler?

We could tell everyone to take a deep breath, or we could allow the jubilation and excitement to spread to the national media.

Jul 23, 2025; Lake Forest, IL, USA; Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson looks on during training camp at Halas Hall. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

"Ben Johnson has been intentionally overloading Caleb in camp, making his life difficult, testing him out." ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter said on Monday's Get Up!. "But, we, he looked sharp and effective. That looked like it should."

Co-analyst Dan Orlovsky reminded that Williams "won't see more vanilla coverages" than he did against the Bills. That said, "Caleb executed flawlessly."

MORE: Bears' Caleb Williams reacts to impressive debut during sideline interview vs. Bills

The timing. The rhythm. The intention. The zip on one pass. The touch on another. The feet in sync with the eys. For a player who raising all sorts of concerns with underwhelming performances in camp, Caleb put together a highlight film in one opinion-changing drive.

Said Williams of his performance, "From a month ago, I've grown a lot."

From the pocket, he was 6 of 7 with the only incompletion a diving drop by Rome Odunze.

Ben Johnson’s larger plan with Caleb Williams was to have him drinking from a firehose early in camp—which is when it looked ugly—then narrow the offense to what they found he was best at later in the summer.

Good signs for the Bears last night that it’s working. https://t.co/luJyCanIe7

— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) August 18, 2025

Said Sports Illustrated NFL insider Albert Breer, "Ben Johnson’s larger plan with Caleb Williams was to have him drinking from a firehose early in camp - which is when it looked ugly - then narrow the offense to what they found he was best at later in the summer.
Good signs for the Bears last night that it’s working.

It's not a local Bears bias. The rest of the NFL also took notice of Caleb Williams Sunday night.

Aug 17, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) warms up before a game against the Buffalo Bills at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | David Banks-Imagn Images