There have been plenty of ups and downs for Bears quarterback Caleb Williams this training camp as he adapts to new coach Ben Johnson and his offense, plus a year’s worth of struggles to overcome, learn from and unlearn.
When Williams finally got in a game scenario, though, it was hard to be anything but impressed. During Sunday night’s preseason meeting with the Bills, the 2024 No. 1 overall pick looked sharp directing his first unofficial drive under Johnson, completing five of six pass attempts for 97 yards and a score. (The Bears had a holding penalty, which allowed them to actually gain 102 yards on a 92-yard drive).
Here’s the touchdown pass, a strike to Olamide Zaccheaus:
One thing worth noting here? Williams had one touchdown pass of 35-plus yards all season as a rookie. His first TD pass under Johnson’s tutelage went for 36 yards.
Overall, Williams went 6 for 10 for 107 yards and the score across two drives before giving way to Tyson Bagent.
Caleb Williams looks at home in Ben Johnson’s system
While preseason games are far from indicative of how a season will go, the debut of the Williams-Johnson partnership brought some intriguing points.
Williams opened his evening with an under center play-action pass to first-round rookie tight end Colston Loveland for eight yards. Last year, Jared Goff, playing under Johnson with the Detroit Lions, had the highest play-action rate in the NFL; Williams had the second-lowest rate, only ahead of Kirk Cousins. Goff also had the highest under center rate in the NFL while Williams was middle of the pack. The very first play provided a hint of what we’ll see more in Chicago this year.
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Williams then hit Cole Kmet on a seam ball for 29 yards, a nice throw just over the linebacker.
Williams connected with D.J. Moore on a crisp out route for five yards before finding Loveland coming across the field — again over the linebacker — for 19 yards. It was a really nice catch from Loveland, who used all of his 6-foot-6 frame to reel in the pass.
Detroit used at least two tight ends on the field at the seventh-highest rate in the NFL last year, so Loveland and Kmet both getting involved early could also be a sign of things to come.
The second drive wasn’t quite as successful but did feature another on target completion to Moore for nine yards on third and 5. The drive ended when Williams and fellow 2024 first-rounder Rome Odunze couldn’t connect. It looked like the ball wasn’t perfect but was certainly catchable.
The most positive aspect was the number that didn’t show up. Williams was not sacked as he threw the ball decisively and on time during his brief appearance. He was sacked 68 times as a rookie, tied for the third-most in a season in NFL history. To see him playing on time when it was available and not forcing things when it wasn’t — he threw one blown up screen into the dirt, for example, and he quickly escaped a blown protection on another occasion — certainly will please Johnson.
The Bears open the regular season against the Vikings on Sept. 8, when Johnson and Williams will face Brian Flores’ convoluted defense on “Monday Night Football.”
