‘A Few’ Bears Veterans Wanted to Bench Caleb Williams Before OC Firing

Kristen Wong | Nov 13, 2024

Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The Chicago Bears are in shambles halfway through the 2024-25 NFL season and desperately looking for any semblance of an offensive identity after firing OC Shane Waldron on Tuesday.

Waldron’s sacking wasn’t the only bombshell report to come out of the building, though. Prior to the move, some Bears veterans apparently called for rookie quarterback Caleb Williams to be benched in favor of backup Tyson Bagent, according to Marc Silverman of ESPN Radio. 

“After talking to a few people with knowledge of the situation, players went to Matt Eberflus & Ryan Poles asking them to make a change at offensive coordinator. There have also been a few veteran players requesting Bagent starts,” Silverman wrote on X on Tuesday.

Several Bears beat writers have since corroborated Silverman’s report.

If true, it would be an extremely bad look for Chicago, who dealt Justin Fields and spent a No. 1 pick on Williams this past year. 

Williams has struggled behind a porous offensive line in nine games so far, throwing for 1,785 yards and nine touchdowns against five interceptions while leading the Bears to a 4-5 record. He has completed a meager 60.5% of his passes and has been sacked a league-high 38 times.

The USC product has no shortage of talented pass-catchers at his disposal, but it’s clear Williams will need better protection if the Bears want to make this developmental season a worthwhile one for their potential franchise quarterback.

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