Everyone in Chicago can agree that the Bears' coaching staff in 2024 did quarterback Caleb Williams absolutely no favors in his development in his first NFL season.
Things have certainly changed in season two, as Williams seems much improved, leading the Bears to a promising 7-3 start and first place in the NFC North. When asked about Williams improving in his processing through the first 10 games, Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle was complimentary of his quarterback in handling a lot of new things being thrown at him in the offseason.
"I remember in either the offseason or training camp, everybody was looking at us funny for throwing a bunch at him. We knew that this was kind of the vision of where we wanted to go. We were going to give him a lot of information that he was going to have to process, and he was going to learn how to process it quicker and get better at it. He’s done that every week, and that’s something that we’re still working through. But I think that he would tell you right now (that) he’s come a long way from the first day of the offseason until now, and we’ve still got a long way to go, and that’s the message."
Williams is handling Ben Johnson's offense faster than most expected
If Bears fans looked back at training camp, Williams struggled through the first two weeks with mistakes being made on pre-snap and making wrong reads. It was a rough go for Williams, but all that ended up paying off.
Sure, there are things he needs to work on. The accuracy is a concern as he is under 60% for the season despite Johnson giving him a 70% goal before the year.
The things stats won't show are where Williams is showing much improvement. He's got ice in his veins in the fourth quarter as he has led five game-winning drives this season. Quarterbacks can have all the arm talent in the world, but if they are not clutch when it counts, it doesn't mean anything. Good thing Williams can do both.
One of the major aspects of Williams' game that has been impressive is his ability to protect the football. He has only 10 interceptions in two seasons in the NFL, with a 1.1% interception rate, which would be an NFL record if he can keep the pace up.
Read more: NFL's quiet move proves they have faith in Bears when no one else does
Williams is still a work in progress, but one that is finding ways to win games, so the Bears have time to work with him, where in a few years, he's going to be scary.