Bears QB Caleb Williams high-fives with fans.
Getty
Caleb Williams of the Chicago Bears received some upbeat news recently.
The Chicago Bears turnaround season ended in disappointment with an NFC Divisional Round playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams in overtime, 20-17.
But even that excruciating defeat could not take away from the fact that, after winning just five games in the previous season, the Bears’ Super Bowl window now appears to be open — thanks largely to breakout sophomore quarterback Caleb Williams.
Williams threw for two touchdowns, including a spectacular deep throw with 18 seconds left in regulation, but also gave up three interceptions in the game. But taken as a whole, Williams’ season undoubtedly placed himself in the NFL’s top tier of signal-callers, after becoming the first overall pick in the draft in 2024.
When the regular season was over, Williams ranked 10th in EPA, or expected points added, a state-of-the-art statistic to measure how much a player has contributed to his team’s winning the game with each play. Williams, who has now made only 34 NFL starts including playoffs, finished with 79.8 EPA, according to ESPN statistics.
The 24-year-old also finished seventh in passing yards with 3,942, and sixth in touchdowns with 27, while taking only 27 sacks, tied for 15th fewest with three other QBs.
Last week, Williams received more news that only points toward a bright future for his career as he prepares for his third season in the NFL.
Williams Ranked 8th Among All NFL QBs
Last week, NFL.com talent evaluator Nick Shook published his annual year-end ratings of all quarterbacks who started at least one game in the NFL in the 2025 season. There were 63 NFL quarterbacks included in Shook’s ratings this time.
Out of those 63, Williams ranked No. 8, just below the elite top tier of six, in Shook’s estimation.
To achieve the No. 8 ranking was especially notable because, of the top 15 quarterbacks in Shook’s rankings, no other QB had as few as just two years of experience — except for the New England Patriots‘ Drake Maye who ranked fourth. Otherwise, of those top 15, the least experienced is the San Francisco 49ers‘ Brock Purdy with four years.
The No. 1 rated QB in the NFL.com rankings, Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams, just completed his 17th season. Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills at No. 2 now has eight years in the league.
Williams ‘Defined the 2025 Season,’ Expert Says
Though he rated seven quarterbacks higher than Williams, Shook appeared more enthusiastic about the Bears sophomore QB than almost any other of those he discussed.
“Williams steadily improved throughout his first season under Ben Johnson and produced some incredible heroics in the postseason, powering an unbelievable comeback over the Packers on Wild Card Weekend and nearly doing the same against the Rams in the Divisional Round,” Shook wrote. “Perhaps I’m a sucker for recency and hyperbole, but by the end of this season, Williams is among the quarterbacks I think of first when I ask the question: Who defined the 2025 season?”
Williams jumped 20 places on the NFL.com list, finishing in the 28th spot after his rookie season. Of those top 15 quarterbacks on the list, only the Jacksonville Jaguars‘ Trevor Lawrence saw an increase as high as Williams’ leap. Lawrence rose from No. 26 in 2024 to No. 6 in the season that just ended.