After being pranked with fake news of Ben Johnson‘s hiring to fill the Chicago Bears head coaching vacancy previously, quarterback Caleb Williams was extra careful before believing the news this time around.

BearReport.com's Zack Pearson revealed the extra steps Williams took to ensure that Johnson had actually been hired by the team.

“Caleb Williams said George (McCaskey) and Kevin (Warren) gave him Ben Johnson’s number to verify. Johnson also sent him a selfie to confirm it was him after what happened with the prank call,” Pearson reported via Twitter/X.

Williams received a prank text and phone call from two teenagers pretending to be Johnson.

Johnson will have his work cut out for him when it comes to repairing the Bears. After going 5-12 in the 2024 season and finishing last in the NFC North, the Bears might have a long way to go.

Williams, however, showed his ability to be the Bears' franchise quarterback moving forward after a successful rookie season. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft went 351-of-562 on passing attempts for 3,541 yards and 20 touchdowns.

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The pair of Williams and Johnson could help usher in a new era of football in the Windy City and get the Bears back to being a playoff contender.

Did Caleb Williams play a role in Ben Johnson choosing  Bears?

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Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

Williams did play a role in Johnson's decision, as he believes a quarterback is essential to the success of any team in this day and age. NFL.com's Nick Shook included a comment made by Johnson.

“Listen, it's clear that modern football in the NFL is quarterback-driven,” Johnson said. “That is no secret. You can look at analytics. Right now, quarterback success is a higher predictor of winning and losing than turnover ratio, which it's been for 20-plus years. That's changed. So there is no doubt that Caleb played a large component into my decision.

“He is a phenomenal talent that had, as many quarterbacks do, an up-and-down rookie year. Where I see my role is as a supporter of him. This offense will be calibrated with him in mind. We're going to build this thing — this is not simply a dropping of a previous playbook and starting there. No, we're ripping this thing down to the studs, and we're going to build it out with him first and foremost, and then the pieces around him next. I really look forward to challenging him and pushing him, as I said before, to continue to grow and develop.”

The duo of Johnson and Williams could be one of the NFL's standout units.