The Bears fired offensive coordinator Shane Waldron partway through his first season in Chicago, but the team is not benching quarterback Caleb Williams. Per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, the No. 1 overall pick of this year’s draft will remain the club’s QB1 moving forward.
Speculation to the contrary arose when it became clear that the possibility of a Williams demotion was discussed by Bears brass in advance of the Waldron dismissal. Rapoport says that while a benching was floated as a theoretical option as the team charted its best course of action moving forward, it was never truly considered.
The idea would have been to give Williams a “reset” like the one that the Panthers gave to 2023’s No. 1 overall draft choice, Bryce Young, earlier this year. Of course, Young started a full slate of games in his rookie season and two more to open the 2024 campaign before his “reset,” while Williams has just nine professional games under his belt. Between that and Williams’ off-the-charts prospect pedigree, even a temporary benching in favor of Tyson Bagent would have qualified as a major surprise.
Instead, interim offensive coordinator Thomas Brown – who, coincidentally, was Young’s OC in Carolina last year – will make some changes to allow Williams a chance to thrive as he continues to adjust to the professional game by learning how to (for instance) check into the proper play at the line of scrimmage and identify protections. He did not have to do those things while he was starring as a collegiate passer, and growing pains in that regard were always expected.
Brown’s changes will not include adding new plays or schemes; as he learned from his time with Young, that might complicate an already steep learning curve. He will, however, ask Williams to focus on getting the ball out of his hand more quickly – the rookie signal-caller has been sacked a league-high 38 times this year – and he will utilize motion and shifts to create more open looks.
Williams has certainly flashed this year; in the Bears’ three-game winning streak from Weeks 4 to 6, he threw for seven touchdowns against just one interception and posted quarterback ratings of at least 106.6 in each contest. But the last three games (all losses) have been a struggle, as Chicago is averaging just nine points per game during that stretch, and Williams has failed to record a QB rating above 68.9 or a completion percentage above 53.7%.
By all accounts, Williams has done everything in his power to hone his craft, and as such, he has the support of his teammates.
As wideout D.J. Moore said, “you got to have support for him, no matter what. He’s going out there, busting his butt, trying to learn everything at once, and the defenses are throwing a lot at him. So, you can’t really be mad at him. You just got to still back him.”
As FOX Sports’ Jay Glazer details, Williams also impressed teammates by apologizing to them after Waldron’s dismissal, accepting the blame for an offense that had regressed to the point that a firing became necessary.
When will teams understand, playing rookie QBs is generally a bad idea? Look at almost all the greats. Want to know what they had in common? They didn’t start most of their rookie year, and most of them waited all of their rookie year. Starting a rookie in week 1. Or even week 8. Is a good way to wreck them permanently.
This, along with the constant GM/HC idiocy, is what the Bears always get wrong.
At the very least the Bears should have brought in a veteran QB so Caleb could have had some competition instead of just anointing him the starter day 1. That said I don’t think it matters when a rookie QB starts it only matters if you surround him with talent… at the offensive line. Poles went crazy getting weapons for Caleb and then got the OL out of the bargain bin.
Yep, QB can’t complete passes laying on his back.
Congrats Bears.. you got the exact person that was advertised.. Million dollar talent, 10 cent mental fortitude.
Did you watch the game today, Hellen Keller?
No he didn’t. Just parroting
At some point the Bears will have to quit making excuses for Williams and accept the fact that he isn’t the answer…other rookies have come in and started and done well…Jayden Daniels comes to mind and so does Brock Purdy…Williams is a bust but I wonder if Daniels would be just as bad in Chicago behind that line…I don’t think so because he seems to understand what he’s seeing and his game for Washington reflects that. Williams also is having to deal with a Head Coach that is in way over his head.
Well, it’s partly on Williams for being terrible, and partly on Chicago for giving him a poor offensive line. The questionable future of the coaching staff doesn’t help. Chicago did do one big thing for Williams, though, and that was going to great lengths to give him a better receiving corps that nearly any rookie has ever had. A reliable number one who has been there for years, a reliable route running and sure handed veteran that the team got from outside the conference, and a top ten draft choice to succeed them after gaining an early rapport with the quarterback…plus a reliable pass catching tight end.
None of that worked out, but it isn’t because the receivers are terrible, and you really can’t blame Chicago or Poles in that department. Moore has had 1000 yard seasons with nearly every quarterback he’s ever played with, including Fields, who mechanically is a much poorer passer that played with many of the same or similar setbacks that Williams is. So, even though Waldron failed at his job, and Eberflus doesn’t offer much to improve the offense, we have to put a good bit of this on Williams himself and not just his teammates or management.
It just seems like he’s finally having to play through hardship for the first time as a player, and hasn’t found a way to get through that successfully; at least, that’s how it seems to me. There were concerns to this effect with Williams before (remember his interview with him talking about the “adversity” of not starting at first in Oklahoma?) So, I agree, but I also want to add that Chicago didn’t just throw him out there with nothing. I don’t think that Daniel’s would have been successful per se in situation, but he probably wouldn’t have been as shell shocked back there. Moore would probably sniff 1000 yards. Maye, for his part, is actually going through a similar situation in NE, albeit with a better coach and worse receivers, so it makes Williams’ struggles a bit more conspicuous to me.
He was an absolute stud today. It won’t be long til the closet GMs and haters will disappear.
Oh, as a Packers fan, I will ALWAYS hate Bears QBs. I already hate this guy. But I can recognize he’s going to be a good player if the Bears don’t eff him up.
I stand by what I said about playing rookie QBs earlier. It’s generally a bad idea.
Oh, as a Bear fan I have no problem with rivalry ‘hate’- I hate the Packers- But I just don’t like haters that spew nonsense about this guy halfway through his rookie season. He put them in position to win in DC but Eberflus screwed it up and he put them in a spot to win yesterday against your team and special teams screwed it up.Williams is fine. He’ll be better when Eberflub is gone.
We’ll see. Unlike every Bears QB since Cutler, I agree he has the tools. But don’t put it past the Bears to screw him up either. He’s got a good amount of drama in him.
I think a lot of the ‘drama’ is in the media and twitter. He’s gotten nothing but respect from his teammates- a much more reliable source. The new OC seems to get him. But no one will really know til next year when Ebeflus is gone.
accept the fact that he isn’t the answer…
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Speaking as a Raiders fan, I will generously offer you a 4th rounder for him.
This concept of benching one player who is playing poorly but ignoring the other players who are playing just as bad, just doesn’t work for me. I think a HC that does this is going to create problems for himself in the locker room. Winning when a team is united is hard enough, winning after you’ve created dissension among the players is even harder.
He will, like Richardson JaMarcus Bryce Young too many to name will ever and never have seen the promise as pros that they had as college athletes. It’s a different game and these kids of QB’s RARELY can play that level against the best athletes college had to offer. They dominate against 2 star recruits that end up selling insurance after college and these GM’s still foolishly believe they can do it against pros.
Stop throwing rookie QBs into the deep end and expect them to become Aquaman
No harm in starting Caleb. The only harm to Caleb was having a crappy HC in Eberflus