Bear Digest

Next Steps Ben Johnson and Ryan Poles Need to See from Caleb Williams

Bears coach Ben Johnson detailed some of the improvements he anticipates coming from Caleb Williams and GM Ryan Poles says their QB still has much to prove.
Gene Chamberlain|
Quarterback Caleb Williams watches the second half of the USC-Illinois basketball game at Galen Center in California.
Quarterback Caleb Williams watches the second half of the USC-Illinois basketball game at Galen Center in California. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

Caleb Williams might be the league's hottest quarterback, at least in terms of positive attention he's receiving now compared to his first year in the league.

He made a tremendous leap and the Bears say they need to see even more as they approach a contract extension. His fifth-year option will be due in May of 2027 but if his play continues on its current path that all might be a foregone conclusion.

"I mean we saw enormous growth over the course of the season," coach Ben Johnson said. "I keep going back to what 7-on-7 looked like at the end of the year versus what it looked like to start the year. A drill as simple as that, yet you see him look so much more comfortable going through some of those same plays.

"You know, a lot of it was like riding a bike for the first time with some of these concepts. You just hadn't seen it and you get thrown a different coverage each and every time and now you can accelerate your vision a little bit and that's what he's learning to do. That's why I'm really confident in the direction he is going. I'm excited for him."

The excitement isn't at the point where GM Ryan Poles is conceding him 2026. There is work to be done and strides to take.

A good example of how things can vary from year to year with a young QB was Baker Mayfield. He went downhill in Year 2, from a 93.7 passer rating with the Browns as a rookie to 78.8 in Year 2. When he rebounded to a career-high 95.9 in Year 3, it looked good for his future, but he declined to 83.1 and in his fifth year was no longer wanted in Cleveland.

"I want to be clear: Anyone that’s watched the league long enough knows that for the quarterback play it’s consistency," GM Ryan Poles said. "Can you stack years on top of each other. We still have steps to go here. I don’t want to make it like he’s already in. He knows he’s got work to do.

"Ben’s been very clear with the vision and I know that he’s going to put the time in to get to that needs to get to that point. But if all of that falls into place, again I think we strategically have to understand how does that change our formula as we move forward and make decisions in the future. But for the organization that’s a great thing to be on that path. I feel like we have a long term quarterback solution. It makes me excited. Obviously he’s excited, Ben’s excited, so it’s good for everybody.”

The place Williams needs to go is an obvious one. He needs better accuracy and to keep drives alive. A 58.1% completion rate just doesn't do it in today's NFL, even with the ability to mount major comebacks like Williams did each week last season.

"Yeah, well, I think there is no question there will be some throws last year that he needs to complete or give a more catchable ball at a higher rate, and he'll be the first one to tell you that," Johnson said. "We, as a coaching staff, take a lot of pride in trying to get the primary guy open. And if we are able to do that, he's going to come through and he's going to make that throw and then if we can't do that for him from a coaching perspective or a playcalling perspective, then he makes us right, you know?

"That's where his magical talent, you know, can be the ultimate eraser for us and fixer. So it's the balance between the two and I'm looking forward to mechanically, he was learning some different things with his footwork. It actually looked more comfortable than I would have thought Year 1. And yet, I really think a full offseason of really drawing that down home is going to help him become more accurate moving forward."

Let's not get ahead of ourselves

Johnson wants to downplay things or be realistic, anyway. However, with what he saw from Williams down the stretch while still possessing limited knowledge of the offense, he can't help but get excited.

"I think what is most encouraging to me is something happened at the end of the year, where I showed him one thing on tape and didn't even think it would come up in the next game and yet it did, and then he threw the ball to the exact spot that I would have wanted him to throw the ball to," Johnson said. "Now, the result of the play wasn't what we wanted to (have) for other reasons.

“And yet something as simple as that, like, holy cow, if this guy can take one little nugget that we talked about the week prior and we really weren't emphasizing and yet be able to apply that in real time in a game, um, man, he's really going to ascend quickly. And so I'm looking forward to it. I really do think this next offseason we'll see significant strides."

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.