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Vibe Check: Bears impressed by ‘super dynamic’ Caleb Williams and his rapid development

9 months agoScott Bair
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LONDON – Caleb Williams had DJ Moore wide open heading towards the end zone. An accurate throw to the back left pylon would’ve locked down a sure touchdown.

The Bears quarterback launched the ball skyward, and it was quickly apparent the pass was lofted too high and without the power to reach its desired destination. Jacksonville safety Andre Cisco was able to make an easy interception after being soundly beaten.

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Williams, shall we say, was not thrilled.

“When he came back the next drive after the turnover, just heard him kind of give out a ‘let’s go,’” receiver Keenan Allen said. “You could tell he wasn’t down. He wasn’t losing any confidence. So, I was like, ‘Okay, let’s see how this goes,’ and then bing, bam, boom, we went all the way down the field.”

On four consecutive drives.

That sequence put the Jaguars away in a game that ultimately ended 35-16 on Sunday here at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Williams ended up completing 23-of-29 passes for 226 yards four touchdowns, that motivation pick and a 124.4 passer rating. That doesn’t include four carries for 56 yards on well-timed scrambles that bailed the offense out.

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It was third straight game that we can dub the best of Williams’ young career, a fact that highlights his continued development and his ability to learn, adapt and apply.

While there’s so much positive to discuss about this game and Williams’ performance over the last three games, the USC product refused to discount his only major mistake.

Despite that fact, we didn’t pout. He didn’t get gun-shy. He attacked without fear, focusing on making the right decisions (over and again) at just the right time.

That included some flashy, tight-window throws. It also included some short, yet smart throws to covert third downs and keep drives going. It was a complete-package type of performance that should wow those around him.

It didn’t do that, not to the folks who see him practice every day and focus so much on little details that lead to big plays. It was impressive, however, for those in the locker room to see how Williams continues to develop at such a rapid rate.

Williams credited those around him for early success, as you’d expect. Then he mentioned one other thing that stood out.

“For me,” Williams said, “the constant mindset of keep going.”

What a fascinating phrase, one that speaks directly to Williams’ ability to just keep swimming after good and bad results. That allows Williams to focus on progress above everything else, even when he’s mad about a bad play.

“He knows that he’s always working and improving and growing,” head coach Matt Eberflus said. “He knows that it’s going to be a big — this year is a big year for him to be able to learn the game up here. You know, he’s always been good enough in terms of the talent and those things. But he’s learning the game and learning our offense and learning our skill sets that we have, learning new things that they can do. You know, so our guys have wide skillsets.

“We want to utilize those guys skillsets to be able to widen that so we can really expand our offense as we go through the year. So, he’s going a good job with that.”

He knows that D’Andre Swift if good in space and the Allen gets open fast and can handle heavy traffic. Moore’s dynamic down the field, Kmet can roll over people down the field and Rome Odunze is slippery through the middle of the field and deep.

He also knows that he can take off if nothing’s available down the field, a weapon effectively used several times in this game

“He’s just super dynamic,” Kmet said. “He’s a pass-first guy, but he has that ability to run, as well, and I think he does a pretty good job of taking care of himself when he does become a runner, as well.”

We’ve seen Williams find that good flow and start converting down the field in recent weeks. And it’s crazy to think about how he looked on Sunday compared to his first few professional games.

That, after talking to so many in the Bears postgame locker room, is the most impressive thing about the team’s young quarterback.

“I think it’s just his growth,” Allen said. “Week in, week out, he gets better.”