It's well-established that the bar for top-tier quarterback play in the city of Chicago is about as low as the final round of a game of Limbo. The Chicago Bears are the only NFL franchise that has never had a 4,000 yard passer, nor a quarterback who has thrown for 30 touchdowns in a season. In fact, more quarterbacks (9) have thrown for 20 or more interceptions in a single-season than there have been quarterbacks who have thrown for 20 or more touchdowns (8).
You get the idea, right? I don't need to keep going, do I?
Well, Caleb Williams represents something of a savior to folks in the Windy City. The 1st overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft arrived in Chicago with a tremendous amount of fanfare and even greater expectations, and after a few rough outings to begin his pro career, the 21-year-old whose nickname is “Superman” is beginning to live up to that billing. It turns out, Williams' Kryptonite may have just been inexperience.
In just his fifth NFL start, Caleb Williams carved up the Carolina Panthers defense, throwing for 304 yards and a pair of touchdowns in a 36-10 win. The Bears are now a perfect 3-0 at home this season, and have won eight straight at Soldier Field. That's all fine and good, and a sign that this franchise which has undergone a multi-year rebuild is finally turning a corner, but it's Caleb Williams who is the story here.
With a second 300-yard game in a span of three weeks, Caleb Williams has set a Bears record, becoming the only rookie in franchise history to have a pair of 300 yard games, per Preston Comer of Bears Wire. It's hopefully the first of many team records that Williams will set both this year and throughout his career.
Caleb Williams, Bears offense continues to improve week-by-week
Caleb Williams' progression won't continue to be linear, as it has been through five weeks. It's not only unprecedented, but also impossible. A collision with the rookie wall is sure to come. But even as these subpar games start to pop up, everyone within the Bears organization knows that the kid they used the 1st overall pick on is up for the challenge.
“He’s just learning and growing and you can see that in these games that we’ve had,” Bears coach Matt Eberflus said after the game. “He knows that. So he’s just got to level up, keep leveling up and every time we’ve challenged him he’s done that ever since the summer.”
The greatest beneficiary of Williams' rapid development has been DJ Moore, who after signing the richest contract in Bears history in the offseason, got off to a slow and frustrating start in the 2024 season. But against his former team, which parted ways with the wideout in the deal that ultimately landed the Bears Caleb Williams as well, Moore had his best game of the year, hauling in five receptions for 105 yards and two touchdowns.
“It took five weeks to get the down-the-field pass game going,” DJ Moore said after the win. “When it hits, it hits, and it was good today.”
It was really good, and now the Bears will have the opportunity to showcase this suddenly explosive offense in London, with a “home game” against the Jacksonville Jaguars coming up next Sunday. Jacksonville earned their first win of the season on Sunday afternoon, but will enter the game in London against Chicago as the 30th-ranked scoring defense in the league. Sounds to me like another opportunity for Caleb Williams to make more Bears history.