Ben Johnson shoots down all lingering concerns regarding Caleb Williams' fear of being the Chicago Bears' quarterback
ESPN reporter Seth Wickersham dropped a bombshell on Thursday revealing sections of his upcoming book titled "American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback."Wickersham's report detailed the first-hand accounts of Caleb Williams, and his father Carl Williams, ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft. Prior to being selected with the first overall pick last offseason, Williams had […]
ESPN reporter Seth Wickersham dropped a bombshell on Thursday revealing sections of his upcoming book titled "American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback."
Wickersham's report detailed the first-hand accounts of Caleb Williams, and his father Carl Williams, ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft. Prior to being selected with the first overall pick last offseason, Williams had concerns about, and thoughts against, being the quarterback of the Chicago Bears.
Such thoughts were warranted. The track record proved the Bears had no prior success developing any quarterback throughout the organization's storied history. Chicago was, and always has been, a place where quarterbacks go to die.
And low-and-behold, those concerns proved to be true in Williams' rookie season. The Chicago Bears, once again, failed a promising rookie quarterback. And it was so explicitly clear that organizational-wide change needed to be made, and fast.
Therefore, before the NFL offseason even began, the Bears went against organizational norms by opening the checkbook to entice Ben Johnson to Chicago as the team's new head coach.
Such a move has instilled new confidence in the Bears' franchise quarterback, and Johnson hasn't seen any of those concerns since he arrived in the building.
“You talk about fears. I don’t see it quite the same way. I see this as what a great opportunity that we have to do something that’s never been done," Johnson explained while on The Herd with Colin Cowherd. "There’s never been a 4,000-yard passer in this franchise and I think Caleb’s going to be the first one. One of many years where he’s going to accomplish that feat…
"I see a chance for greatness here for him. He’s been communicative that way. He feels the same way. I don’t know about what’s gone on before I joined the organization, but he’s very proud to be a Chicago Bear. That’s what our conversations have included. He’s really excited to get to work right now and be the best version of himself for 2025."
Adversity happens everywhere in the NFL, no matter what team you play for. And experiencing a 10-game losing streak while playing for an incompetent coaching staff will likely be the worst thing that can happen in Williams' tenure here. Adversity will still strike again, but now Williams has the support to battle through the tough times.
"There’s no question we’ll face adversity," Johnson added. "We want to see growth over the course of the season. It’s not going to be linear growth. It’s going to be a little bit of ups and downs along to the way, but we want to see from Game 1 to 17 that we’re getting better as a whole. That’s not just him, that’s us as a team as well. I’m excited. That’s what makes coaching fun. When the hiccups occur, when the adversity strikes, how do we respond to it. That’s when you find out who you are as a man."
In order for this new partnership to work out and break an organizational curse, it's going to take a lot from Williams and Johnson. Williams has already been putting in the work before and after hours, beyond actually working with the staff.
"He’s really trying to get it right. We’re giving him scripts. He came in and he’s in the indoor, trying to walk through it by himself," offensive coordinator Declan Doyle explained. "I think it’s really important to him that he gets it right. I think his teammates can feel that. I think his teammates feel a guy that’s trying to take the next step."
All that talk about not wanting to come to Chicago and be the savior of the city was shut down by Williams' himself. He recognized the challenge ahead of him in his career with the Bears and decided not to drop the match, but to dive head-first into the opportunity. Such concerns are in the past and need to be left there.
Lately, the Bears have finally been making the right moves to bring out the best in Williams' game, not hold him back like they did with every other quarterback in franchise history. What's being built in 2025 is truly something different in Chicago, and that should be the real story worth writing about.
Bears’ CB Tyrique Stevenson catches unnecessary stray during the Los Angeles Chargers 2025 Minecraft-themed schedule release
This poor guy deserves better.
