Earlier this week, a video showing Caleb Williams emotionally reacting to missing some throws during an individual drill went viral and sparked concerns among some Chicago Bears fans regarding the second-year quarterback’s development.
For an article published on Thursday morning, ESPN’s Courtney Cronin spoke with Bears general manager Ryan Poles about that clip.
“I actually think it’s pretty cool,” Poles said about the video sparking hot takes about Williams. “I knew there was a bad practice. I’ve seen clips on Twitter. I didn’t know it was a national crisis of Caleb struggling.”
The Bears hired an advertised offensive guru in Ben Johnson as their new head coach this past winter with the hope that he would help Williams bounce back from a rookie season that was filled with more lows than highs and that included the in-campaign firings of offensive coordinator Shane Waldron and head coach Matt Eberflus.
According to Pro Football Reference, Williams ended last season ranked 31st in the NFL among qualified players with a 46.7 adjusted QBR and a 62.5 percent completion percentage. Additionally, the first pick of the 2024 draft took a league-high 68 sacks.
It was always silly that any fan would assume Williams might look like Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes this summer while learning a new offense for the second straight offseason. Without directly saying so, Poles reminded outsiders that Williams’ maturation as a QB1 and as an offensive leader remains a work in progress.
“I think as a human being, I want it to happen super fast, and I would love for it to look really clean and for [Williams] to look like a fifth-year vet right now,” Poles added during his comments. “But I think, just being in this long enough, what’s reality, though? It’s going to take time. It’s new. …You want this time to look, be as hard as possible. And then when you get to game time, when the lights come on, you want that to then slow down.”
It’s unclear if Johnson will play Williams and other key offensive starters when the Bears open the preseason with a home game against the Miami Dolphins this coming Sunday. As much as Johnson wants to have Williams as healthy as possible for Week 1, the 23-year-old potentially could benefit from getting in some reps against at least one opposing defense.
