NFL insider speculates a rough timeline for when Ben Johnson could potentially pull the plug on Caleb Williams and put in Tyson Bagent
A decision that would make literally zero sense.
The Chicago Bears are 0-2 to start the 2025 season and a lot of people are justifiably upset from the outside looking in after all the high expectations this team had under new head coach Ben Johnson.
Frankly, a lot of things have gone wrong for this team. Quarterback Caleb Williams looked frantic in Week 1, the defense surrendered over 50 points in Week 2, and Ben Johnson’s scheme hasn’t been able to take off due to mental errors.
But, let’s not act like all of this falls on one person. The Caleb Williams talk is getting tiring. This new relationship with his new head coach and play-caller has only had two games, and Williams looked much more improved in the second game of the season.
Yet, the talk continues to be about whether or not Williams can be the guy for this offense. And on Wednesday, a national insider speculated a timeframe for when Chicago could make a change at QB.
“What if the Bears’ Caleb Williams doesn’t find his footing in Ben Johnson’s timing-and-rhythm passing game by, say, Week 10? I think Williams showed positive signs in Sunday’s loss in Detroit. But the feeling coming out of camp was that, despite Williams’ otherworldly talent, the offense was a bit crisper with Tyson Bagent running the huddle. Is Johnson willing to be patient here? I think so. And Williams’ immense talent is a commodity worth betting on. But these coaches feel pressure to win — three-year grace periods no longer exist — and Johnson didn’t draft Williams. Just thinking out loud.” – ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote
Talk of benching Caleb Williams is getting ridiculous, and the opposite of what Ben Johnson thinks
Let’s remember something here. Ben Johnson came to the Chicago Bears because of Caleb Williams. And he knew it would take some time to rework Williams’ entire mainframe and build an offense with him at the center of it. So, why would he pull the plug on Williams after 10 games for a backup quarterback who ran an offense that was “a bit crisper” in camp?
This goes against everything Johnson is wanting to build in Chicago and the top decision-makers in the building are actually willing to give Johnson a grace period to make this work. No one expected this thing to hit the ground running flawlessly in Year 1.
What Johnson wants to see in Year 1 is consistent steps forward from his quarterback and that’s what he saw after the first two games of the season so far.
“I did see significant growth,” Johnson explained of Williams. “It’s not perfect yet. There’s still a number of plays where our eyes aren’t quite in the right position or we’re holding onto the ball just a tick longer than what we’re coaching. But I did see tremendous growth in terms of going through the progression… I did think he got better from Week 1 to Week 2. I’m encouraged by what I saw and I’m hopeful that we’ll continue to see another leap here this week.”
Let’s say it continues to take multiple weeks for this offense to efficiently run and maybe Williams starts taking too many steps back for Johnson’s liking. I’m still struggling to understand how one player can magically solve all the problems for this team.
If the Johnson-Williams relationship fails, this team is in major trouble for years to come. And that’s not something that’s going to be figured out after a full year, much less just 10 weeks. We need to stop with this nonsense. Once this offense starts rolling, the talk will sound a lot different.
“We’re going to have some hiccups along the way,” Johnson added. “I’m aware of that. But, his approach to the game right now is what it needs to be. He’s coming in, he’s doing the work. Eventually, these results will start speaking for themselves. As long as he puts the work in that he’s doing, we’re going to be okay.”
Chicago Bears News
Bears’ offensive struggles are forcing Ben Johnson to have a hand tied behind his back and it has nothing to do with Caleb Williams
Something’s gotta change.
