Caleb Williams was just about perfect Sunday in his return from a hamstring injury. Everything the Bears dreamed of when they drafted him to be their franchise quarterback in 2024 — his decision-making, his throws, his poise, his energy — showed up in their 31-23 victory over the Falcons in Atlanta.
But, as veteran Case Keenum pointed out after his own sparkling game against the Eagles last month, the NFL rewards great performances by immediately demanding them again.
Williams isn’t expected to regularly duplicate what he did Sunday, when he completed a phenomenal 30 of 36 passes, but he’s looking to establish consistency somewhere in that neighborhood. That’s what it’ll take to put the Bears (4-2) in the Super Bowl conversation — a challenge that gets tougher with the Patriots and the Seahawks coming up next. Those teams met in the Super Bowl last season and are led, respectively, by two of the NFL’s preeminent defensive coaches — Mike Vrabel and Mike Macdonald, masterminds who can play chess with Williams and Bears coach Ben Johnson. The defending champion Seahawks have the top-ranked defense in the league; the Patriots’ have the sixth. Both are in the top half of the NFL in pressuring quarterbacks and defending against the pass.
With the Patriots coming to Soldier Field on Thursday, Williams faces a quick turnaround, then will have an extended opportunity to regroup before the Bears visit Seattle on Nov. 2.
The short week is tough as it is, but it’s especially challenging as Williams deals with ongoing injury maintenance. He said last week that although he’s healthy enough to play, he isn’t fully healed and will need to put in extra time between games to keep himself in playing condition.
“Lots of treatment,” he said after the game Sunday, discussing his plans ahead of the Patriots’ visit. “Studying film while I’m watching treatment. It’s just another thing that’s added to my day. It’s going to be like that for the rest of the year — just making sure I’m on top of it.
“After a 60-minute game, I feel pretty good. I have no stiffness, no tightness. . . . I’ve got to let the adrenaline settle down and figure out how I feel after that.”
Sore, probably. Returning to the field Thursday with the same electricity will be difficult. However, Williams and the Bears knew what they were getting into when he took the field against the Falcons instead of waiting another week in a season that already had been all over the place. He was fantastic in the season-opening win over the Panthers, then struggled significantly against the Vikings before straining his hamstring late in the game.
Some quarterbacks, like the Bills’ Josh Allen and the Rams’ Matthew Stafford this season, have the track records to write off their total duds as aberrations. That’s where Williams wants to be. Against the Falcons, he took a major in that direction, completing 83.3% of his passes — the second-highest percentage in team history — and throwing for 305 yards and a touchdown for a 111.8 passer rating. Hall of Famer Tom Brady, calling the action for Fox Sports, deemed it the best game of Williams’ young career.
Williams deflected Brady’s comment, sounding a lot like Johnson.
“When you win, it covers up things,” Williams said. “When you lose, it shows everything. We’ll be truth-tellers about ourselves and figure out what we need to fix and get better.”
The victory Sunday left Williams with an NFL-leading 72.5% completion percentage, a 101.5 passer rating and an average of 237.3 passing yards per game — all reasonable targets for him to average this season. If he settles into that level of efficiency and production (or better), all questions will be answered. What’s more, the Bears will have a quarterback they can count on to compensate for other personnel deficiencies and possibly put them into title contention.
When the rushing attack fell flat, Williams carried the offense, which was missing No. 2 running back Kyle Monangai. D’Andre Swift averaged just 2.8 yards per carry, Roschon Johnson 3.9.
Although he did take four sacks, Williams also navigated instability on the offensive line and spread his passes among eight receivers.
Those are all signs of a quarterback stepping into his own, not simply dependening on his circumstances.
After going 11-6 last season and coming within a couple of plays of reaching the NFC Championship Game, the Bears are aiming for a deeper playoff run. Their roster, while imperfect, looks ready enough. They have sufficient pieces on the offensive line when healthy, a talented group of skill players, a top-10 defense and a credible coach.
From there, though, everything rides on Williams. The Bears will be whatever he is, whether that’s good, great or erratic. He played at a championship level Sunday. More of that will give his team a chance against anybody.
