Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams takes control

LONDON – As Chicago Bears wide receiver DJ Moore stood at the podium on Wednesday and gave a candid assessment of rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, an interested observer stood about 15 feet away, creating a potentially awkward situation.

Among the adjectives Moore used to describe Williams was “bossy.”

“What I mean by bossy is that if we don’t get something done in practice, he’ll tell us how to approach it,” Moore said. “And we just look at him and say, ‘Okay.’

“When we’re out there for the game, just make sure you work because if you don’t, he’s going to have a few words for you. This shows that he is a leader. He’s a bit bossy. This is the little brother.”

DJ Moore on Caleb Williams taking a leadership role on offense. Or as he jokingly put it, “being bossy.” 😂 pic.twitter.com/eYoAOGoA1R

– Bears on CHSN (@CHSN_Bears) October 9, 2024

For Williams, who at 22 is the second-youngest player on the Bears’ roster, learning how to give constructive criticism was a trial and error.

“Some people you can be a little bossy with, some people you have to talk to in a very monotonous way and keep yourself in control, and sometimes there are people you can just lash out at,” Williams said. “I don’t really strike out much. That’s not really my vibe.”

“But I just come over to talk to the boys when I can. I’ve grown up a bit. I understand that even if I’m frustrated with a drive or a play we had, maybe we made a mistake or whatever the case may be. “We understand that there’s another drive ahead, there is another part of the season that we also need to focus on, talking to them and understanding how and what they need to hear and then moving on.

Williams laughed at Moore’s “bossy” characterization and described it as “cheeky.” The Bears enjoyed a few laughs as they entered Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars (9:30 p.m., ET, NFL) on a two-game winning streak, and much of that success was due to Williams’ development.

Despite only playing five games in his career, Williams has already reached or is well on his way to achieving several milestones:

• He is the first Bears rookie with 300 yards passing and zero picks in a game. That came during the Week 5 win over the Carolina Panthers, when he led the NFL with a QBR of 83.9.

• He set the franchise rookie single-game record with 363 passing yards in the Week 3 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.

• He is the only Bears rookie with multiple 300-yard passing games.

• He is one of five players to have multiple 300-yard passing games this season.

• He is on pace to finish with the third-most passing yards in Bears history (3,709).

He’s come a long way since his NFL debut, when he was 14 of 29 for 93 yards and had a QBR of 28.5 in a win over the Tennessee Titans.

“I think he’s learning to play professional football,” general manager Ryan Poles said. “And when I say that, that means having a winning mentality in terms of: What does it take to win football games from the quarterback position?”

“And you have seen that explosives are now emerging in terms of efficiency, protecting the football, taking what was given to him and then going into that last game. I really like his progress, I love the work ethic and the time he puts in, the grit and tenacity, the ability to bounce back from difficult games. He’s exactly where he should be and he’s only getting better.

One area where Williams’ progress is most visible is on the deep ball.

After completing five of 29 passes of at least 15 yards in Weeks 1-4, with the lowest completion rate (17%) and worst TD-INT ratio (0-3) among qualified quarterbacks on such throws, Williams was 4-of-4 for 108 yards and two touchdowns against Carolina.

That’s been the goal the Bears’ offense has been working toward for weeks, and Chicago is looking to achieve the same against a Jaguars defense that has the most gains of more than 20 yards (24) this season and a league-high pass percentage of 287 .8 yards allowed per game.

“We all know he can make it big,” tight end Cole Kmet said. “We’ve seen that in the last few weeks.”

When the Bears selected Williams with the No. 1 overall pick, there was speculation that he could become the franchise’s first quarterback to throw for 4,000 yards in a season. To reach that mark, he will need to average 242 yards rushing over the next 12 games.

He is also three 300-yard passing performances away from setting that franchise record.

That shows how low the bar is for quarterback play in Chicago and how quickly Williams is taking steps to change that narrative.