Chicago Bears QB Caleb Williams had an up-and-down rookie season, but with offensive guru Ben Johnson taking over as the new head coach last year, the former Heisman Trophy winner began to hit his groove.
The future appears to be incredibly bright for the Chicago Bears and the quarterback, who is one of the most electrifying players to watch in the NFL, is a major reason for the realistic expectations.
Williams finished the 2025 regular season with 3,942 passing yards, 27 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. As a true dual-threat QB, he added another 78 rushes for 388 yards and three touchdowns.
The Bears finished the the 2025 season with an (11-6) record which was good enough to win the NFC North. They knocked off the Packers in the wildcard round of the playoffs before falling to the Rams in an overtime divisional round thriller to end their year, but it’s obvious the future is bright.
According to Pro Football Reference, Williams led the Chicago Bears to six fourth-quarter comeback wins in 2025 which suddenly makes him one of the most clutch QBs in the NFL heading into 2026.
Caleb Williams takes clear shot at former teammate Spencer Rattler when asked about his time at Oklahoma
The hype surrounding Williams has followed him since high school, throughout college and ultimately earned him the Heisman Trophy and getting selected with the first overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft.
His rookie season in Chicago wasn’t the only time Williams faced adversity in his football career, though.
Williams made the decision to enroll at Oklahoma as a true freshman, even though Spencer Rattler, the projected future No. 1 overall pick in the NFL was starting at QB for the Sooners.
On a recent episode of the Pivot Podcast, Williams was ask about the biggest pivot he’s had to make in his life and he pointed to the adversity of having to sit on the bench behind Rattler, despite believing he was the top quarterback on the roster.
“The most recent one was Oklahoma when I didn’t start, that one was real tough for me,”Williams said.
“I knew that Lincoln was the best in the country and I was in the best in the country. I told many people before I went there that I was going to start and play and beat him out. I thought I beat him out in Spring, and he was the projected No. 1 and all that so he started for six games. So I prepared and Lincoln told me ‘keep going.”
But Williams said he continued to ask his head coach how he can get a shot to start over Rattler.
“I asked him ‘how do I beat this dude out?” Willams continued.
“Because he never let me get reps with the first team, so I took advantage of my reps, and put my head down, but at a certain point I feel like I beat him out. I went up and asked Lincoln again, ‘how can I beat him out?”
Williams said his head coach just kept reiterating to keep preparing and admitted he was overcome with emotion not getting a chance to start for the Sooners ahead of Rattler as a true freshman.
“At the time I was so angry and so frustrated because at the time that wasn’t what I wanted to hear,” Williams said. “I felt like I was the best, I felt like I could have helped us win, but I kept preparing so when I had my moment, there was no way he was ever going to get it back.”
Halfway through his first season in Norman in 2021, Rattler struggled mightily in the first half against Texas in the Red River Showdown.
Oklahoma trailed 35-17 at halftime and Riley finally made the decision to bench Rattler for Williams. The decision paid off instantly, with the true freshman giving the Sooners offense a spark that it lacked all season. He ripped off a 66-yard touchdown run on his first possession and connected on multiple downfield throws which gave the Oklahoma offense a new dimension it didn’t have.
The Sooners won 55-48 and Rattler never got his job back.
It’s clear the Chicago Bears QB has had a deep belief in himself for a long time, which should only help the franchise continue to climb back into annual contention in the NFC.