Caleb Williams was supposed to be a franchise quarterback chicago bears The team literally waited 100 years to select him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Williams' arrival in Chicago was a miracle in itself. The pick was acquired in a trade with Chicago. carolina panthers A year ago, a top QB prospect joined an emerging young team, and Chicago appeared to be poised for a long run of competition.
I wish it were this easy. The excitement was reaching its climax as the game was about to start 5-2. of commander of washington They connected in a Hail Mary that tore Chicago's hearts and ruined their season.
The Bears snapped their 10th straight loss on Thursday night in another disappointing game against the Bears. seattle seahawks. Chicago once again had a poor offense, scoring just one field goal in the 6-3 loss.
The Bears can no longer pin all their problems on former head coach Matt Eberflus, who was fired after the team's disappointing loss on Thanksgiving. Interim head coach Thomas Brown has been just as bad, continuing to highlight how dysfunctional the Bears are at every level of the organization. Williams is caught in the crosshairs.
Williams was said to be starting his career in the best situation ever for a No. 1 overall pick. Fast forward 17 weeks and in hindsight it suddenly seems like a ridiculous statement. The Bears' offensive line is probably the worst in the NFL, allowing constant pressure and hits on their star rookie. The highly touted wide receiver core was also a major disappointment. Williams shouldn't shy away from blaming himself despite being in a seemingly no-win situation.
Williams has been sacked 67 times, the most in the NFL by a mile. The Bears' batting lineup is terrible, but Thursday night's disgraceful performance once again highlighted how the rookie quarterback keeps the ball in the pocket too long. According to next generation statistics Williams' average time is 2.91 seconds. He has the 13th most pocket wins per pitch in the NFL. pro football focus According to Chart Data, Williams was pressured on 193 of his dropbacks, the third-most in the NFL.
Although Williams bears some responsibility for this pressure, PFF The rookie is in serious trouble, as 19.2% of those pressures are at some level responsible for him, seventh-most among eligible passers, according to Chart's data. With two games remaining, Williams is close to breaking David Carr's NFL record of 76 in a season.
Williams has another problem that isn't talked about much. I can't make deep passes this year. He was unable to complete a pass that traveled more than six yards in the air Thursday night.
In the Bears' TNF loss to the Seahawks, Caleb Williams failed to complete a single pass more than six yards downfield until the final drive of regulation.
Less than 10 years: 15/17, 107 yards (+4.5% CPOE)
10+ years: 1/9, 15 yards, INT (-27.2% CPOE)#SEAvsCHI | #Dabears pic.twitter.com/4pr4JU2jsm— Next Generation Statistics (@NextGenStats) December 27, 2024
Weather may have played a role in Thursday night's game against Seattle, but Williams' inability to connect on deep balls has been an issue all season. He is one of the least accurate downfield passers in the NFL, even attempting deep passes at times.
According to chart data from Pro Football Focus.Williams ranks 23rd out of 25 qualified QBs at 26.7 percent on throws of 20 yards or more (defined as 50 percent of his team's throws). His 8.1 yards per attempt on those throws ranks 25th out of 25 qualified QBs. Minnesota's Sam Darnold leads the pack with 18.2 YPA on such throws.
Williams also ranks 24th out of 25 eligible passers in PFF's adjusted completion percentage on throws of 20 air yards or more.
This is a deep ball mistake in the second half of the 4th quarter against Seattle. The Seahawks had a pass rush, but it felt like Williams was able to get into the pocket and get strikes downfield. Instead, he never took the stage and airmailed what was a contested chance for fellow rookie Roman Odunze.
I thought Caleb was getting the ball out quickly and well in the first half. The felt team disappointed him greatly. Concepts are often bad. There are also fewer mistakes. He has very few sacks. But this was terrible, just took my eyes off the blitz play, no resets, no highlight balls. pic.twitter.com/a00q6u01XL
— B (@BShulkes) December 27, 2024
Even in the loss, Williams was able to create some magical moments for Chicago. He made a big 4th down conversion on DJ Moore. Late in the fourth quarter, Seattle's pass rushers come after him. He also made a 3-15 to Odunze later on the drive.
Williams' best pitch of the night didn't count. This amazing touchdown toss was called back for a holding.
Williams still has a lot of talent and should develop into a very good NFL QB. The Bears' next head coach will have to work on getting rid of the ball faster and finding ways to connect with deep passes.
This season has been a nightmare for the Bears in every sense of the word. Williams remains the team's hope for the future, but his rookie year was a somber one in more ways than one.
