First and foremost, this is not an anti-Caleb Williams rant. This is simply bringing some harsh truth to the surface, and Chicago Bears fans better get ready to start having this conversation.
In what was a disappointing, yet not surprising loss to the Baltimore Ravens, Williams was not sharp. The offense was not sharp, but Williams was noticeably off. And, the fact that the Bears had been winning games was sort of masking a season-long issue, as ESPN's Courtney Cronin recently wrote about:
"The accuracy issues Williams struggled with (eight off-target throws, according to ESPN Research), showed up on the next drive that stalled at the Ravens' 22-yard line. Kicker Cairo Santos was sent out for another field goal.
"Of those eight off-target throws, Williams threw six in the fourth quarter as the Bears tried to make a comeback. Williams has now been off-target on 21.5% of his throws this season, second worst among qualified quarterbacks behind only Atlanta's Michael Penix Jr. (22%)."
Caleb Williams is among the league's worst when it comes to his accuracy struggles
This really isn't anything new. Bears fans who watched Williams over the course of his rookie season started to be reminded of the same problem early on this year. We've talked about him sailing passes to wide-open receivers, which take up a healthy amount of his inaccurate passes.
If you think about the above stat, Bears fans should be coming to one major conclusion: this is going to take longer than we thought.
If Caleb is going to pan out the way a no. 1 overall pick should pan out, then it is going to take a lot longer than any Bears fan originally thought it would. That's not necessarily to say that he won't wind up a franchise quarterback, because he still shows all the potential in the world.
He has such a fascinating skill set and can be a true dual-threat when he wants to. He can make all of the throws (cough, Jay Cutler flash backs). But, his processing isn't quite there just yet. He's not being decisive enough with the football and taking advantage of guys when they're open.
This could be a case of overthinking, or it could be a case of being a slow learner. It might even be a bit of both.
But, it's an uncomfortable conversation that needs to be had. Williams can still be a very good quarterback in this league, and he's had some fantastic moments and even great games. But, the inconsistency is too glaring not to talk about.
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Let's remember he's only seven games into his first season with Ben Johnson and give him the benefit of the doubt. But, right now, the progress isn't where most thought it would be.