Chicago Bears fans weren’t sure what to expect from Caleb Williams this season. They knew he had talent. Arguably, the most of any quarterback in franchise history. However, it takes more than physical tools to thrive in the NFL. This team has learned the hard way with guys like Justin Fields, Jay Cutler, and Mitch Trubisky. As the 2025 campaign unfolded, it became apparent Williams had something many hadn’t expected. He seems to play his best football in crunch time, delivering clutch drives in the 4th quarter.
He’d engineered back-to-back game-winning drives against the Raiders and Commanders to get the Bears to 3-2. It looked like he wouldn’t need another in Cincinnati as the Bears led 41-27 with two minutes left. Then Joe Flacco put up 15 points in 40 seconds to erase that lead. Chicago was stunned. Most people thought it was over. Not just the game, but the season. You don’t come back from things like that. With 54 seconds left, Williams had one last chance to save the day. In an episode of 1920 Football Drive, he revealed what he told head coach Ben Johnson right before stepping on the field for the final drive.
It was just two simple words.
Caleb Williams wasn’t lying when he said he doesn’t get nervous.
People thought he was boasting when asked about it last year. The only time he got nervous was during his first high school game. After that, he learned to keep his emotions under control and developed a taste for the dramatic. In hindsight, we probably should’ve seen this coming. Caleb Williams’ first game in college was a wild comeback against Texas while coming off the bench. He went on to do it three more times against Oregon State, Arizona, and California. So there were always signs he could rally his team late, but people didn’t take much notice of it.
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Whatever the case, to think the Bears got this type of player after watching other organizations enjoy it for so long is surreal. Chicago hasn’t been synonymous with late-game heroics since Michael Jordan retired. The last thing anybody expected was for a Bears quarterback to pick up that mantle. Yet here we are.