Many wondered what the working relationship would be between Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson and quarterback Caleb Williams in their first year.
Johnson is coming into Chicago looking to change the culture that former head coach Matt Eberflus built, which, if we are all being transparent, was a lot of losing. This required Johnson to come in and be hard on the players' development and bring back accountability to the Windy City.
Williams was left on an island his rookie season as he regressed instead in progressed. He needed to work side-by-side with Johnson to improve and be the franchise quarterback the city of Chicago deserved.
After some tough offseason workouts and training camp, it appears the two are on the same page in the best way possible.
What Johnson and Williams said about working with each other and how it's going
Johnson spoke with the media on Wednesday where he was asked about Williams. The first-year head coach was complimentary of his quarterback and even got bold with his thoughts on 2025.
"We’re going to grow together," Johnson said via Chris Emma of 670 The Score."This offense is going to grow together with him. There will be some bumpy steps along the way, but that’s OK. ... I feel really good about where he’s at right now. There’s no reason as to why we can’t win this year."
When Williams took the podium to speak with the press, he was also high on his head coach and backed Johnson up.
“I got the utmost confidence in Ben (Johnson), his coaching ability, his playcalling and all of that. I think it comes down to us being able to execute exactly what he puts out there for us as a team, as an offense.”
Caleb Williams: “I got the utmost confidence in Ben (Johnson), his coaching ability, his playcalling and all of that. I think it comes down to us being able to execute exactly what he puts out there for us as a team, as an offense.”
— Chris Emma (@CEmma670) September 3, 2025
Williams had a solid preseason as he played in two games and showed early on that he has a good grasp of the offense. He completed 68% of his passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions.
Training camp was far from perfect, following early reports of pre-snap issues on offense and Williams showing some struggles. It improved throughout the weeks, with all aspects seeming to be on track for Chicago.
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Expectations should be tamed in Year 1 under Johnson, but he and Williams appear to be working well together, which should lead to success and progress by the end of the season.