Is Caleb Williams who the Bears envisioned when they picked him? | Chicago Sports Tonight
CHICAGO - Caleb Williams just keeps adding comparisons to this repertoire.
He’s been Superman. He’s been the No. 1 overall pick and the Heisman. On Sunday, his head coach had another comparison for the Chicago Bears quarterback.
"I'll tell you, he looks like a Houdini back there in the backfield," Bears head coach Ben Johnson said.
Williams did his best Houdini act, escaping sacks and rushes as the Bears escaped another loss. Sunday was more than just a win, too.
There haven’t been many Bears in the past two decades who have showcased the same kind of toughness that Williams has. That toughness was on display Sunday.
If the handful of Bears’ victories shone a light on Johnson’s ability to coach, willing the Bears from their norm of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory to winning games in various ways, Sunday was a spotlight on just how tough Caleb Williams is.
Williams’ teammates know this. It’s become a main part of Williams’ identity as a quarterback.
"He's a gamer for sure. We all knew that," Bears left tackle Theo Benedet said. "He doesn't gotta prove it to us, but it's just another example."
The backstory:
Williams is far from perfect.
The Bears’ offense was stagnant for nearly three quarters. The Bears had a first-quarter touchdown, but after that, they only mustered a field goal before the fourth quarter. He was 20 of 36 passing, meaning he still missed 16 passes.
The offense was disjointed for most of the game. That is, until the Giants kicked a field goal on fourth and one from the one-yard line to go up 20-10 instead of going for a bigger blow.
That kept the Bears in the game.
"I don't know, man. I can't explain it," Bears wide receiver Luther Burden said of Williams. "It gets close, man? Just watch out."
With Sunday’s comeback win, Williams has six fourth-quarter comebacks since last season. This is tied for the most in the NFL. It was also his fifth game-winning drive since week 18 of 2024, which is also tied for the most in the NFL.
After the game, Williams talked about his demeanor in those moments. It isn’t any different than the beginning of the game.
"The calmness at the end of the game, the belief, the faith, the hope, and like I've spoke about before, living in the now," Williams said. "I think that's where we were. We knew that it was going to be a full 60-minute game, and that's what it took."
It helps that some teams haven’t put the Bears away.
The Commanders, Raiders, Bengals and, now, the Giants fall into that category. The wins over the Commanders and Raiders were Johnson changing the narrative. The wins over the Bengals and Giants were on Williams.
On Sunday, the Giants’ pass rush didn’t sack Williams. But, they did harangue him consistently.
Williams was pressured 17 times, according to Pro Football Focus. He Houdini’d his way to avoid all those pressures. He still took three quarterback hits according to the final stats, but he took a few more hits as a runner. There were times when Williams got up gingerly, favoring something.
He still got up. He still got back. That’s toughness from the second-year quarterback.
"He's scrambling out of there, he's taking a little hit and he's popping right back up," Wright said. "He's getting in a huddle, getting everybody fired up. I'm proud of him."
What we know:
That led to the last drive.
Williams engineered a game-winning drive that included a 17-yard touchdown run where he went around a Giants’ defender, cut back inside and scored. That level-headedness was what the other offensive players noticed.
"He's calm in the huddle," Bears wide receiver DJ Moore said. "He's rolling off the play calls and going out there and executing. And you see him at the end: just go be Superman and do it himself."
The coach who was hired to get the best out of him also reveled in how Williams’ Superman abilities allow him to have a margin of error.
"That’s the unique thing about his skill set, is he's got that ability," Johnson said. "As a play caller, certainly it helps me out because I don't feel like I need to be perfect with these play calls. He's going to make these things right. So that's the balance, that's the trust that we have as a quarterback and a play caller."
There were plenty of errors on Sunday. The Bears’ top three receivers dropped six passes. Johnson didn’t get his tight ends a target in the passing until the 10:08 mark of the second half.
But, it didn’t sink the Bears because of Williams.
He was never rattled. He hasn’t blinked during do-or-die drives. In fact, he said he just settles in even more.
"I can feel my body just kind of settle down," Williams said. "I think that's important for me when I'm out there in those moments but also the calmness, demeanor of when I'm in the huddle looking at those guys in the eyes and the belief, the faith, like I said, living in the known in those moments. It provides a certain level of confidence for us to be able to go out there and deliver."
Williams has done nothing but deliver wins in Year 2.
Imagine what it looks like when it all comes together the way Johnson wants in the future.
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