Pro Football Focus seems to be the only outlet that saw Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams drop 59 points in a season-opening win against the Carolina Panthers and come out of it with a sense of disappointment, as their lackluster grade for No. 18 set social media on fire.
PFF gave Williams the 20th-highest grade of any quarterback in Week 1, putting him closer to Malik Willis than many of the best QB performances of the week. Fans losing their marbles over PFF grades is nothing new and will continue as long as the site operates, but this one was so egregious that some Bears fans are discrediting the entire grading process.
This game further proved is that not only are PFF grades for quarterbacks an imperfect science that should be taken as a point of reference and not gospel. In addition, it crystallized the notion that Williams' bombastic style of play is going to be rewarded under this very rigid grading style.
Chicago Bears QB Caleb Williams earns middling PFF grade despite 59-point showing in Week 1
PFF grades every play on a scale of -2 to +2, with the lowest being reserved for game-changing, inexplicable mistakes and the highest being assigned so rarely that only three throws since 2024 have earned +2 status. Using this scale, PFF viewed Williams accounting for 334 yards and four total touchdowns as milquetoast.
Of Williams' 40 dropbacks against Carolina, 23 of them were scored as "0" and eight were +0.5. In other words, in PFF's eyes, over three-quarters of Williams' plays were either routine and expected or only barely exceptional enough to move the needle slightly.
Williams was also dinged for what would have been a fourth-quarter interception at the goal line with Chicago up 45-31 that was later negated due to a penalty, with the justification being that the penalty doesn't negate the poor decision by Williams. That line of logic opens up a can of worms.
Will quarterbacks who make great throws on plays that were helped by an offensive holding penalty also be praised, even though the penalty changed how the play transpired? Was that one infraction-altered play so bad that the other dimes down the field were viewed as fairly commonplace? Apart from Williams, that is a flaw in the system.
Does Williams seemingly get no credit for making plays with his legs? According to these grades, Williams' scrambles were either expected or not very impressive.
PFF deemed that Williams was accurate on only 53.8% of his throws (Williams completed 72% of his passes vs. Carolina), good for 24th in the league. 27% of his throws were deemed "catchable but inaccurate."
Williams has two problems working against him here. First, this is a vague notion for what proprots to be an objective system. What is catchable? What is accurate? How intertwined are the two? Second, Williams will never be Drew Brees from an accuracy point of view, and knocking his grade down this much due to the ball being an inch away from perfection seems harsh.
Chicago Bears QB Caleb Williams may never be a PFF darling
Based on how the grades shake out, PFF seems to value quarterbacks who get the ball out of their hands quickly, don't take bad sacks, and throw with dead-eye accuracy. Williams, for his many positives, is never going to play that sort of surgical style. He's a Maserati. You don't take the Maserati to the in-laws' place for a baptism party.
Williams' ability to uncork special throws from unusual angles, make plays with his legs, and warp the defense's scheme around him is what makes him one of the best young quarterbacks in the league. Somehow, the minds over at PFF haven't found a data point that accurately depicts this.
PFF views Williams in the same way as a tourist complaining about the Wi-Fi at the Taj Mahal. PFF's grading process inherently makes someone with Williams' high-wire style look worse than he was, both by amplifying his warts and minimizing the rarity of throws only a select few in the NFL make.
Read more: Hot seat meter for 6 struggling Bears starters after Week 1 win over Panthers
Williams should have his feet held to the fire if he starts regressing and picking up some bad habits from his rookie year. However (and feel free to call this a blisteringly hot assumption), it's fair to assume the quarterback of a team that put up 60 points played better than most that afternoon. Call me old-fashioned.
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