Caleb Williams, offense back to work to 'keep getting better'

LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Caleb Williams’ NFL debut didn’t bring the flash and pizzazz promised with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Growing pains are a part of the game.

It’s tough to categorize last Sunday’s struggles for the offense as a slump without seeing what the unit is capable of producing, but Williams believes the key to getting into a positive rhythm begins with a solid week of practice.

“I think it was around six throws that obviously, if we would have hit those, everything would have seemed a lot different. Throws that we hit in practice all the time on simple routes, on intermediate and then the one or two deep balls. If you hit those, the game, everything kind of explodes and things would have been said differently about how we played on offense. We’re here getting better.”

The Bears took to the practice field at Halas Hall on Wednesday without two major weapons for their rookie quarterback. Rome Odunze did not practice, riding a stationary bike with a compression sleeve on his right leg, and is considered day-to-day with an MCL sprain. Keenan Allen also had a rest day as the receiver heals from a heel ailment.

That’s not slowing down Williams as he prepares for his first primetime test on Sunday night. “Obviously, it’s going to be a little different because Keenan’s Keenan, Rome is Rome. But Tyler is Tyler.” Caleb’s referencing second-year receiver Tyler Scott, who was inactive for Sunday’s season opener but could see the field with Odunze’s status for Sunday night in doubt.

Matt Eberflus, during his Wednesday availability, was asked about Scott possibly getting run against Houston with a dinged-up receiving corps. The head coach said, “Opportunity. You’re looking for a crack in the door.” The Bears like what they have in the 5-foot-11 speedster, but that skill set didn’t have a spot on last week’s gameday roster.

But the personnel changes won’t change much about Williams’ mentality ahead of Sunday: “We’re going to get some other guys (involved) and things like that, and you know, keep building that trust and belief and bond that we’ve been building since I got here.”

Caleb Williams focusing on improving his game one play at a time

Williams was far from perfect against Tennessee. In fairness to the rookie quarterback, scouting a defense with several new pieces and a defensive coordinator who hadn’t called plays has its challenges. Luckily for the No. 18, there’s a year of tape to watch on DeMeco Ryans’ defense in Houston.

However, Caleb understands that improving his game is more than just studying the opposition. Asked what he feels needs work to help the offense click ahead of Week 2, Williams said, “I would say the drops. Sometimes I rushed my drop a little bit, not needing to. One specific route that I can think of is Rome when, I think it was a 10-yard route right over the ball, and I rushed my drop and tried to juice it in there a little bit and missed.”

It’s a process with any rookie quarterback, and part of that process is realizing that just about everybody in the NFL belongs. Asked what he’s learned that can contribute to a quick turnaround for the offense’s abysmal performance, Williams said, “Understanding it’s the NFL. They’ve got good players on the other side. They’re gonna make plays. Like a few batted balls that we had. Go in the right spot, throwing the right shoulder, all these other things, trying to throw it over back, all these other things that sometimes a player’s gonna get his arm up, bat it down.”

Accentuate the positive

In a league where players strive for consistency while gameplay can be anything but, Caleb Williams has taken every opportunity to remind himself (and us) that despite the offense’s wobbly showing against Tennessee, the Bears won the ballgame.

Celebrating a Bears Victory Monday isn’t exclusive to the fans at home either. “Waking up, I believe it was Monday or Tuesday morning, you woke up and realize that you won your first game in the NFL regardless of how you felt of your performance. We won our first game and felt super excited. Felt super excited about not necessarily how I actually performed but like I said being able to come out with that win and being able to help lead these guys to that win.”

Williams isn’t taking that winning sensation for granted and is hungry for a chance to showcase his talents, and more importantly, push the Bears to their first 2-0 start since 2020.

Previewing the Texans, Williams said,  “I expect them to be aggressive. I expect them to be excited to get out there, being in front of their home crowd. … They play well, play together, fly around, tackle, and all these other things. We get to go against a great defense again this week.”

Undeterred, Caleb Williams believes in his team’s ability to hang with a team further down the line than the current iteration in Chicago: “We are excited, I know they are going to be out there excited. I know the stadium is going to be rocking. Getting to practice and preparing for that. We all are excited. Go Bears.”