Bear Digest

Chicago Bears 2024 quarterback report card: grading Caleb Williams

Alan Goldsher

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, staring daggers at his offensive line
Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, staring daggers at his offensive line / Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
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When you get a lousy grade at school, it generally falls on you. Because trig isn’t a team sport.

It’s a tad different when discussing a particular NFL position, especially quarterback. Unless your name is Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson—unless you’re a dude who can control the field with both your arms and your legs—you’re heavily reliant on your O-line, and your receivers, and your backfield, and your offensive coordinator.

In 2024, Chicago Bears rookie Caleb Williams lacked support from all of the above.

  • The offensive line allowed 68 sacks, the most in the NFL.
  • The receiving corps racked up the fifth-fewest yards in the league with 3,552, a whopping 1,366 behind the NFL-leading Cincinnati Bengals.
  • Their 1,734 rushing yards ranked them 25th.
  • Neither of Williams’ offensive coordinators—Shane Waldron and Thomas Brown—are still employed by the Bears.

The former Heisman Trophy winner barely stood a chance. But if we’re talking grades, Williams gets an A+ for effort.

Bad Habits

Not all 68 sacks fell on the offensive line, as Williams consistently demonstrated two frustrating tendencies when faced with a rush:

  • A reluctance to throw the ball away.
  • A habit of heading straight backwards to avoid defenders.

Both of these traits can be coached away, and one would hope that new head man Ben Johnson and quarterbacks coach J.T. Barrett can work some magic with Williams’ fundamentals.

Running On Empty

Williams is a fast, shifty runner, but he didn’t rush as much as one might have hoped.

RB1 D’Andre Swift had a disappointing first year in Chicago, which is why Williams became the Bears’ most dangerous runner, racking up 489 yards on 81 carries, a nifty 6.0 average yards per carry.

But as per PFF, of the 81 carries, just 38 were designed.

That falls on Waldron and Brown, a pair of unimaginative play callers who, for reasons that are beyond comprehension, refused to let Williams use his legs on a regular basis. That likely won’t be an issue under the Johnson Regime.

Pickless

Williams’ most impressive attribute in 2024 was his ability to protect the ball. He threw six interceptions in 562 attempts, and his 1.1% interception percentage was the 20th-best in the league since 2000 (minimum 400 attempts).

Those are elite numbers, numbers that perhaps somewhat represent why Williams was dubbed a generational prospect.

All in all, Williams’ bads outweighed his goods—but that doesn’t mean the USC product doesn’t have the goods. Give him a few more ducks in a row, and 2025 will look a whole lot better than 2024 for a young man who has the opportunity to be a star.

Grade: C

Published
Alan Goldsher
ALAN GOLDSHER

Alan Goldsher has written about sports for Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Apple, Playboy, NFL.com, and NBA.com, and he’s the creator of the Chicago Sports Stuff Substack. He’s the bestselling author of 15 books, and the founder/CEO of Gold Note Records. Alan lives in Chicago, where he writes, makes music, and consumes and creates way too much Bears content. You can visit him at http://www.AlanGoldsher.com and http://x.com/AlanGoldsher.

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