With improvement as a passer and some correction sure to come in an aspect of his rushing production, it was easy to be very bullish on Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams as a fantasy football asset heading into this season.
Through two weeks, Williams is the QB9 in fantasy with one top-10 weekly finish (Week 1) and at least 17.98 fantasy points in both games (Yahoo! scoring). Fantasy managers who've started him in one or both weeks are fine with what has transpired thus far, and there's certainly upside in play as the season goes along.
The Bears will take on the Dallas Cowboys in Week 3. With two of the worst defenses in the league on the grass at Soldier Field, it's a perfect get-right opportunity for Williams and the Bears offense, with the extra layer of former Bears head coach Matt Eberflus now being Dallas's defensive coordinator.
It's also one of those "start everyone you have on both teams" games for fantasy managers, with few exceptions.
Caleb Williams is in line for a breakout fantasy performance in Week 3
In Week 1, spurred by two rushing touchdowns, the Cowboys allowed 24.2 fantasy points to Jalen Hurts and he finished as the QB8 for the week. In Week 2, they allowed 450 passing yards and 31.3 fantasy points to the current version of Russell Wilson, as he finished as the QB2 for the week.
Williams might be able to combine passing numbers along the same lines as Wilson's with noticeable rushing production like Hurts had against Dallas. That's a mix that would of course yield a huge fantasy week, and with that in mind Williams is the subject of Yahoo! fantasy analyst Justin Boone's bold prediction for Week 3.
"Caleb Williams will be a top-five quarterback"
"For all the criticism Williams has received, he’s far from a bust. We witnessed a handful of strong statistical performances during his rookie campaign, including top-12 fantasy numbers in five different weeks — with three of those landing him inside the top-five. We knew it would take time for the Bears offense to come together under Ben Johnson, but Williams began the season as the QB9 in the opener and has scored at least 18 fantasy points in both games. Now, he gets a Cowboys defense that’s been the third-easiest matchup for fantasy passers so far, allowing Jalen Hurts to deliver as the QB8 (24.2 points) in Week 1 and Russell Wilson as the QB2 (31.3 fantasy points) in Week 2. Defense will be an afterthought in this contest, which is tied for the second-highest projected point total of the week at 50.5."
Read more: Week 2 PFF grade points to clear area of improvement for Caleb Williams
If Boone wanted to go all the way bold, with the injury attrition that has taken place at quarterback as a factor, he could have gone a step further and predicted Williams will finish as the QB1 in fantasy this week. A top-five finish for the week is definitely in play though, and it could be the first of many for the Bears' quarterback this season.