The Chicago Bears saw massive improvements from their franchise quarterback, Caleb Williams, last year, which led to the team going 11-6, winning the NFC North, and advancing to the playoffs against the Green Bay Packers.
Williams ended up breaking the franchise record for passing yards in a season with 3,942 yards and had 30 total touchdowns to just seven interceptions while leading an NFL-record seven comebacks and game-winning drives in the regular season and playoffs. Bears general manager Ryan Poles appeared on the Rich Eisen Show, where he talked about what went into Williams' improvement in 2025.
“[Caleb Williams] understands the expectation of being a professional quarterback," Poles said. "Seeing his growth and development, I think you can correlate that to Ben [Johnson].”
Ryan Poles credits Ben Johnson for Caleb Williams' performance in 2025
Johnson has done more than transform Williams' career in just one year, as he has done wonders with the offense. The Bears' offense ranked dead last in total offense in 2024, but when Johnson took over as head coach last year, it skyrocketed into the top 10, ranking sixth in the league and averaging 369.2 yards per game.
There were many differences in Williams' game from 2024 to 2025, showing drastic improvement. Williams was better at decision-making, taking fewer sacks (68 in 2024 to 24 in 2025) and more often throwing it away for an incompletion rather than forcing passes.
That, in turn, affected his accuracy, as Williams went from completing 62% of his passes in 2024 to 58% last year. The media has discussed that at length throughout the offseason, but many people still believe that Williams can be an NFL MVP someday, possibly as soon as 2026.
Everyone saw how hard Johnson pushed Williams in mini-camp and training camp last season, with many concerned about how the young quarterback would handle it. Well, it worked out pretty well, and because of it, there is mutual respect between Williams and Johnson, which proves that a special quarterback-head coach bond has been created.
Read more: Bears new assistant might have been put on notice inadvertently by Ben Johnson
If Bears fans thought the 2025 season was a wild ride, wait until 2026 when this team is only going to get better.