Former Bears HC Matt Eberflus slightly pushes back on the idea that Caleb Williams received no guidance while watching film in 2024
The topic of conversation this offseason for the Chicago Bears, whether we like it or not, has been about quarterback Caleb Williams and what unfolded for the young quarterback during a turbulent rookie season.The outcome was the outcome, and Williams came out of it in a better situation going into 2025. Ideally, I'd like to […]
The topic of conversation this offseason for the Chicago Bears, whether we like it or not, has been about quarterback Caleb Williams and what unfolded for the young quarterback during a turbulent rookie season.
The outcome was the outcome, and Williams came out of it in a better situation going into 2025. Ideally, I'd like to leave the past in the past as much as anyone involved, but we keep getting more wrinkles to the story.
One of the big takeaways looking back on the 2024 season in Chicago is that Williams revealed he received little to no guidance while watching film from the coaching staff.
Here’s the full relevant excerpt from Seth Wickersham’s book, American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback: “At times, Williams said he would watch film alone, with no instruction or guidance from the coaches. ‘No one tells me what to watch,’ Caleb Williams told his dad. ‘I just turn it on.’”
Based on how things ended with the coaching staff in 2024, mainly head coach Matt Eberflus and offensive coordinator Shane Waldron, it was pretty easy to believe Williams' account of things and move on, which in hindsight wasn't fair to the staff.
Finally, we got a little bit of the story from the other side after Eberflus was asked directly about the film study dilemma on The Doomsday Podcast.
"I would say this, in the development of the quarterback position, and really all positions at my time with the Bears, we have always had daily coached film sessions," Eberflus explained. "That was all through the entire year. So, that's what I observed and that's where it was."
Not to get into all the "he said this, and he said that" of it all, but both sides could be right here. It's likely the coaches had daily film sessions with Williams but that doesn't mean those sessions were particularly helpful or efficient for the quarterback.
Just because the coaches were in there with Williams watching film doesn't mean they're instructing him on what to specifically focus on each given day. But, again, this is all irrelevant at this point in time.
The new coaching regime understands there was some kind of disconnect in that process and are working to correct that now for Williams' sake, which includes having a veteran quarterback in the room with him in Case Keenum to help answer questions.
"He's a sponge. For being an all-world talent…to be humble enough to ask questions and to watch and learn, it's been refreshing to see a guy that young and that talented, but still to take what I have to say. It's been really fun," Keenum said.
At the end of the day, what happened in 2024 no longer matters, for any player. And that's the message the new staff is looking to push into the locker room and to the media as well. It's time to respect that after finally hearing from every side.
