Bear Digest

Caleb Williams panic-meter: Concerns rise as bad habits return

After an ugly performance against a bad team, how worried should Bears fans be about their quarterback?
Pete Martuneac|
Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears are 4-2, but a short scroll through social media would lead one to believe the sky is falling at Halas Hall. Caleb Williams put up a dud in the Bears' Week 7 victory over the Saints, taking what appears to be the first step down a road well-traveled by Bears fans, one that ends with yet another headstone in Chicago's quarterback graveyard.

You may call that an overreaction, but Bears fans are well within their right to begin panicking just a bit about the former first overall pick from the 2024 NFL draft. Hailed as a generational quarterback, with one former NFL GM even saying he'd take Williams over Peyton Manning, Williams has thus far fallen far short of expectations. Compounding this problem is the fact that Jayden Daniels, selected second overall, won Offensive Rookie of the Year honors and played in the NFC Championship while Drake Maye, selected third overall, currently looks like a dark horse for the 2025 MVP award.

The rotten cherry on top is that, on paper, the Bears have a much better roster than either Washington or New England. Looking at the supporting casts for Daniels and Maye, you could imagine what they would do with the kind of talent that Williams has around him that he appears to be squandering.

Despite growth from rookie season, old habits die hard

The reason for Bears fans to be encouraged by Williams is the clear growth he's shown in Year 2, including in some of his biggest problem areas. For one, sacks are way down. Williams is on pace to finish with just 31 sacks, which would be less than half of his 2024 total. That is massive growth that can't be denied, and it's not all due to the O-line upgrades either as Williams' sack avoidance has also improved.

His deep ball has also gotten much better since last year, which opens up the offense more for Ben Johnson to dial up deep shots down the field. Lastly, he appears to be taking chances again, just as he did in college. In 2024, Matt Eberflus appeared dead-set on coaching the aggression out of Williams and it resulted in a hesitant, uncertain quarterback terrified of making mistakes at the expense of picking up huge plays.

What has Bears fans concerned after Week 7, then, was the re-emergence of these bad habits. Williams looked like the worst version of himself from 2024 as he missed open receivers, held the ball too long, scrambled backwards, and let the pressure get to him. Perhaps worst of all, Williams' pedestrian outing derailed his pursuit of Bears' history.

Time to panic? Not even close

As aforementioned, it's understandable for Bears fans to have their hand ever hovering just above the 'eject' button when it comes to their quarterbacks. They've been burned far too often to buy in until their QB is clutching a Lombardi trophy. Still, we must remain level-headed and reasonable. Williams is a young quarterback six games into a new coaching staff, learning an incredibly complex offense.

For comparison, look at Ben Johnson's first year as the offensive coordinator in Detroit. Jared Goff, then a seven-year veteran who had learned from Sean McVay and had started in a Super Bowl, struggled early on to grasp the concepts. In his first six games, he completed less than 65% of his passes in four of them while the Lions continued to lose games.

It took time for Goff and the Lions to become an offensive juggernaut, and it's going to take time for Williams and the Bears, too. I know Bears fans are tired of having patience, but this time it's really different. Williams is going to be great if you just give him and Ben Johnson more time.

Panic-meter: 3/10

Caleb William
Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images

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Pete Martuneac
PETE MARTUNEAC

A former Marine and Purdue Boilermaker, Pete has been covering the Chicago Bears since 2022 as a senior contributor on BearsTalk. He lives with his wife, two kids and loyal dog.

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