NFL coaches are starting to fear Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson explains how things are only going to get even worse for the league
The Chicago Bears have something special in quarterback Caleb Williams and other opposing coaches in the NFL are already afraid of what he’s starting to become.
The Chicago Bears are already laying out the early building blocks on a massive extension for quarterback Caleb Williams, a sign that the former first overall pick has done enough in his first two seasons to prove he’s a franchise star.
The Bears are not the only team that feels this way about Williams. After a turbulent rookie season, Williams took major strides in Year 2 under the tutelage of head coach Ben Johnson and the league has taken notice.
With Williams at the helm of this new offense, the Bears never felt like they were out of a game, a feeling the team hasn’t experienced in ages. Opposing teams felt the same way after facing Williams and the Bears during the 2025 season.
Opposing NFL coaches learned to fear Caleb Williams when games got close late in the fourth quarter
“You can’t get comfortable at any moment in the down,” Tennessee Titans head coach Robert Saleh said of Williams at the NFL Annual Meeting. “Especially as the game gets bigger and bigger, he gets better and better. He proved that last year. His fourth-quarter heroics all last year were ridiculous.”
Saleh went up against Williams in Week 17 while Saleh was the defensive coordinator of the San Francisco 49ers, the main coach responsible for defending against the rising star. Williams and the Bears’ offense went toe-to-toe against a high-powered 49ers’ offense and scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to take a three-point lead.
However, after the 49ers scored a late touchdown, the Bears’ final drive of the game came up just short of the end zone to potentially win it. Even still, the poise Williams showed in that Sunday night game earned the respect of Saleh.
Three weeks later, Williams had a miraculous touchdown throw to force overtime against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC’s divisional round playoff game, a moment that left another NFC West coach with a similar feeling.
“He’s a stud,” Rams head coach Sean McVay said of Williams. “Just preparing for him, watching the crunch-time throws, I think he did a great job. Ben does an excellent job putting a lot of pressure on defenses, but [Williams is] doing a lot of different things pre-snap which takes a lot of coordination and challenging parts for the quarterback.
“The things that are so impressive are when things go off-schedule. I mean, I couldn’t believe what I witnessed on that fourth down and four. It’s one of the most incredible plays I’ve ever seen.”
Unfortunately for Chicago, that game against the Rams ended up as another close loss for the Bears but mutual respect was still shown for the way Williams rose to the occasion.
“He seems like he lights up and he’s at his best in the most important moments,” McVay added. “You can tell there’s a belief that his teammates have in him. He’s a great guy, I wish him nothing but the best. Except for when they’re playing the Rams.”
Bears now need to get Caleb Williams to take that next step in Year 2 under Ben Johnson’s offense
Williams showed the rest of the league during the 2025 season what people in Chicago already knew. He’s a dangerous quarterback that can lead this team to new heights. For Williams to reach that next level though, more work is needed.
“When you watch our self-scout, we’ve probably got 80 to 100 completions left on the table,” Johnson said after evaluating Williams’ season. “I think he’s going to recognize that.”
As exciting as those clutch moments were, Williams left a lot to be desired in the other three quarters throughout much of the season. It’s an area the team is committed to fixing ahead of the 2026 season with a full offseason ahead to reflect on what didn’t work.
“We’ve had a healthy amount of time apart this offseason and away from football a little bit. And I know this: the conversations we’ve had on the phone have been really positive,” Johnson explained. “I think he’s getting that itch again. He wants to know where his game needs to improve and how he can help us the most.”
Later this month, teams with returning head coaches can begin offseason workout programs and the Bears can start working hands-on to improve upon those mistakes. While the team intends to start from the basics once again, the hope is that the process will be much quicker in Year 2 with less growing pains.
“The hope is—not just for Caleb but for our entire offense—that we start a lot further along in the spring and in training camp than where we were a year ago, and I feel pretty confident that that is going to be the case,” Johnson added.
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