Caleb Williams really showed us something on Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings. The Bears rookie quarterback made some amazing throws, smart choices and reads and led a spectacular fourth-quarter comeback that didn’t turn into a Bears victory.

They ultimately lost 30-27 in overtime, with Williams and the offense unable to put one more great drive together.

RELATED CONTENT:

• One play stood out that is is microcosm of the Bears 2024 season
• Caleb Williams received a powerful message from an unlikely source following Vikings game
• Overreactions: Caleb Williams is that dude, Matt Eberflus’ hot seat, Thomas Brown and more
• Caleb Williams’ development can be a source of hope during rough stretch

That takes some shine off of Williams’ showing, but it didn’t erase. There were plenty of positives to pull from his best game as a professional, with legitimate optimism that he can the franchise quarterback Chicago has longed for.

Let’s dive into all that in this week’s Counting on Caleb:

Week 12 stat lines

Box score

32-for-47 passing (68.1 comp%), 340 yds, 7.2 ypa, 2 TD, 0 INT, 103.1 passer rating; 6 rushes, 33 yards, 3 sacks, 0 fumbles

PFF Metrics

PFF Passing pressure

Kept clean (77.8%): 26-for-38, 283 yds, 7.4 ypa, 1 TD, 0 INT

Under pressure (22.2%): 6-for-9, 57 yds, 6.3 ypa, 1 TD, 0 INT

Not Blitzed (57.4%): 17-for-27, 148 yds, 5.5 ypa, 0 TD, 0 INT

When Blitzed (42.6%): 15-for-20, 192 yds, 9.6 ypa, 2 TD, 0 INT

PFF Passing direction map

Overall evaluation

Coach Dave Wannstedt’s take

“Caleb took another step (on Sunday). Put the yards aside and the throws aside. I thought that, in the fourth quarter and with the game on the line, that Caleb took control of that thing. They scored two touchdowns and kicked a field goal to take it to overtime. That is something big that he can put in his memory bank that shows him, ‘Hey, I’m taking these steps. With the game on the line in the fourth quarter, I respond and I respond big.’ That’s very critical for a rookie quarterback trying to move up the ladder as far as building and building (on his confidence early in his NFL career).”

Eberflus, Williams on Caleb’s Week 10 performance

“True grit. Inspiring to the whole football team. Just really good execution. He did a really good job I thought all day. Like I said earlier in the week, that’s a tough defense to go against with the different looks, the pressures, variation of coverage. I thought he did a really good job of finding the space, as we talked about early in the week, getting the ball to our skill. He also changed the speed on the ball that he was throwing. Sometimes he threw it in there a dart, sometimes he lobbed it.

“He’s growing in front of our eyes. Today was a really good growth for him to be able to go out there and execute the way he did with a 103 passer rating. Get those drives going at the end to put us in position to win the game.” – Matt Eberflus on Williams’ fourth-quarter performance.

“When it gets to two-minute, like today end of the game, before OT, now it’s time to go be Superman, do all those different things that I can do. But throughout the game, play the game the right way, make adjustments, all these different things. Throw hot. Make the right reads. Play within the offense. When it’s time to be Superman, it’s kind of what he tells me. That is what he tells me in the headset, go be Superman at the end of the game. That’s how it goes.” – Williams on how OC Thomas Brown is coaching him

Rookie rankings

Williams is among four rookie quarterbacks making regular starts for their respective teams at this time. Here are their overall stats through 11 weeks:

Jayden Daniels (Washington): 227-of-332 passing (68.4 comp%), 2,613 yds, 12 TD, 5 INT, 7.9 ypa, 97.6 passer rating; 99 rushes, 556 yds, 7 TD; 27 sacks, 3 fumbles

Bo Nix (Denver): 259-of-399 passing (64.9 comp%), 2,548 yds, 16 TD, 6 INT, 6.4 ypa, 88.9 passer rating; 64 rushes, 300 yds, 4 TD; 19 sacks, 1 fumbles

Caleb Williams (Bears): 233-for-372 passing (62.6 comp%), 2,356 yds, 11 TD, 5 INT, 6.3 ypa, 84.9 passer rating; 55 rushes for 339 yds; 44 sacks, 4 fumbles

Drake Maye (Patriots)*: 148-of-226 passing (65.5 comp%), 1,458 yds, 10 TD, 7 INT, 6.5 ypa, 85.4 passer rating; 33 rushes, 286 yds, 1 TD; 21 sacks, 5 fumbles

* Maye assumed the starter’s role in Week 6

Williams on what comes next

“Obviously, you see these guys — talking about my teammates — fight all the way till the end regardless of what happened. The plays, good, bad, we fought all the way till the end. That’s definitely encouraging. You don’t want to be around people that are quitting, giving up. That’s not the type of guys we have.” – Williams on the fight Chicago shows despite struggles