Bears make the final call on Caleb Williams’ status against Packers after encouraging pregame workout at Lambeau Field
Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams put his hamstring through a full pregame test at Lambeau Field, and Chicago’s inactives list against the Green Bay Packers carries notable decisions on both sides of the ball.
The Chicago Bears have made their final, and expected, decision on quarterback Caleb Williams with just under 90 minutes until kickoff against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Williams went into the weekend listed as questionable with a hamstring injury, but he will not play on Sunday.
Williams was officially added to the inactives list for Sunday’s game. He also isn’t the emergency third quarterback. That means Tyson Bagent will start at quarterback against Green Bay, with veteran Case Keenum serving as his backup.
This was always the expected outcome for Williams, but the encouraging part of the day came before the inactives were announced. Williams went through a workout of roughly 30 minutes on the field ahead of kickoff. He moved around, tested the hamstring, and completed a full throwing session at Lambeau Field.
Caleb Williams takes another step forward despite sitting against the Packers
Sunday’s workout builds on real progress for Williams. He was limited in practice on Friday, which was his first practice since he injured his hamstring in Week 2. He then added another half hour of work before kickoff in Green Bay.
Williams aims to play in Week 6 when the Bears go on the road against the Atlanta Falcons next Sunday. He took big steps forward this week and we’ll see how things progress for him next week in practice. But, for now Chicago will lean on Bagent again to run Ben Johnson’s offense against a division rival.
Other notable inactives
Below is the full list of inactives for the Bears going into Sunday’s game:
- QB Caleb Williams (hamstring)
- RB Kyle Monangai (thumb/toe)
- OT Ozzy Trapilo
- LB Keyshaun Elliott (quadriceps)
- DE Jamree Kromah
- DT Jayden Loving
Looking at this list, offensive tackle Ozzy Trapilo is the other big inactive name. Many expected this could be the game Trapilo got active and rotated in a bit at left tackle with Theo Benedet. However, the Bears are being extra cautious with his return to play. It’s not time yet for Trapilo, and for the second week in a row, Jordan McFadden will likely serve as the backup swing tackle.
“He’s getting closer and closer each and every week and that’s where these padded practices are so important to us,” Johnson said of Trapilo o Wednesday. “It’s part of the reason why we put him on the 53 (man roster) when we did was so that we could capitalize on early in the season, coming out of camp, getting all this padded work with him to regain that confidence and so he’s getting a lot closer but I feel really good about (OL) Theo (Benedet) right now as well. What he brings to the table and particularly in the run game. We feel like he played solid last week and is only going to play better the more experience he gets.”
The Bears also made a decision Saturday on which of the three players on the PUP list to activate. Defensive lineman Shemar Turner and cornerback Kyler Gordon were not activated on Saturday and instead Chicago activated linebacker Noah Sewell, who is active for Sunday’s game.
It’s worth noting that the Bears only had one roster spot available to activate one of those three players. Sewell opened his 21-day practice window on Sept. 23, so his days were already numbered. With rookie linebacker Keyshaun Elliott out and running back Roschon Johnson elevated to the RB2 role with Kyle Monangai out, the Bears needed depth at linebacker and on special teams. Sewell can provide both. Also at running back, the Bears promoted Zamir Scott from the practice squad.
That means we’ll have to wait another week before Turner or Gordon get activated. Both players remain on the PUP list for another week.
As for Jamree Kromah and Jayden Loving, they continue to be healthy inactives for the fifth week in a row. Those are two names to watch that Chicago could release and hope to bring back on the practice squad to clear room for Gordon and/or Turner. The Bears need roster spots if they want to get those two back on the active roster, and inactive depth pieces is the logical place to look.
