Bears coach Ben Johnson did his usual dance around who he’d start at quarterback against the Falcons on Sunday, but every indication he gave before practice Friday — and all signs throughout the week — pointed to Caleb Williams making his return.
The Bears listed Williams as questionable after he practiced in full Thursday and Friday, and the NFL defines “full” as a player doing 100% of their “normal” work. He also did an extended workout Wednesday when the team opted for a walk-through.
Johnson described him Friday as “on track,” which seemed to mean on track to check all the necessary boxes to play Sunday, but when asked to clarify that definitively, he smiled coyly and said, “Potentially.”
He’s committed to the bit, no matter how silly and tiresome it has gotten over the past month. He did seem to genuinely have fun with it.
Predictably, Johnson refused even to say who is next in line behind Williams out of Tyson Bagent and Case Keenum, which is very much in question after Bagent got benched against the Packers.
It’s more of the same at Halas Hall, where one day earlier Williams railed against what he considered inaccurate reporting while neither he nor Johnson did anything to clear it up in the weeks after he suffered a hamstring injury Sept. 20 against the Vikings.
Two weeks ago, after Johnson played games about who would start against the Jets, he sent Keenum and Bagent out for the first play and said later he did it because his decision to start Bagent leaked the day before. Bagent, though, said the play had been in the works all week.
There’s an easy way to avoid all that, of course.
Anyway, Williams’ return would clear away the clutter like a leaf blower. It also gives the Bears a chance to get their season on the right path.
Johnson spent his first season with Williams drilling him on the fundamentals, then assigned him offseason homework. Going into this season, Johnson sought to find the perfect blend of his clockwork play designs and Williams’ unique talents as a passer and runner.
Everything looked right in the opener against the Panthers, when the Bears scored 59 points and Williams posted a 124.1 passer rating, but nosedived the next week. They were down 9-3 with seven minutes left when Williams felt a pop in the back of his leg and feared his season might be over. He was 15-for-26 passing for 138 yards with an interception for a 56.2 passer rating at that point, so there’s a lot of work still remaining.
“He was on an upward trajectory before the injury happened, and I expect him to pick up where he left off,” Johnson said.
The Bears had Williams hold his usual midweek news conference Thursday, further pointing toward him playing, and he said that while the injury hasn’t fully healed, he felt strong and fast.
He also felt hurt. Not only did Williams dispute the reports of him having a Grade 2 hamstring strain, but he was well aware that he was being mocked and ridiculed for leaving the field in tears. When Johnson said the next day he wouldn’t rule out Williams for the very next game, it fueled accusations that he was being overdramatic.
Johnson was well aware of the frustration Williams vented Thursday, but didn’t seem to care about how the injury information was communicated publicly.
“We've been very transparent with each other about how we want to go about our business, and he's doing a great job attacking his rehab to get back on the field to help his teammates,” Johnson said. “That's what he's solely concerned about.
“And as a team, we are trying to use every competitive advantage that we possibly can get.”
The best advantage the Bears can get at quarterback is to have Williams back.
Keenum was excellent in the 27-7 win over the Eagles in Week 3, but the Bears can’t count on him to continue that performance. He’s been in the league 15 years, mostly as a backup, and has an 84.7 career passer rating.
The Bears have been high on Bagent for years, but he’s been a letdown in his opportunity this season. Over three games, including two starts, he has completed 65.6% of his passes, thrown for 409 yards and has no touchdown passes and three interceptions for a 63.9 rating.
Williams is still a work in progress himself, but the high end of what he can do towers over the alternatives. The Bears believe they can make a run at the Super Bowl this season, and that’s not happening without Williams on the field and improving. They’ve stayed afloat at 3-2, and they need him to lead them from here.
