Ben Johnson took the podium after the Chicago Bears pulled off another late comeback to take down the New York Giants. At the heart of it was Caleb Williams, who engineered arguably his best all-around performance of the season. He threw for 220 yards, ran for 63, and scored two touchdowns. Both came at the end of the 4th quarter. Yet what stood out the most was the zero sacks the Bears allowed, and much of that came from Williams’ uncanny ability to slither out of danger. New York pressured him 13 times but never got him on the ground.
Johnson said he saw Houdini back there. It was an apt description. Harry Houdini was, of course, the first great escape artist of the 20th century. It seems the Bears’ social media team took that to heart because they put together a highlight reel of Williams’ best escapes, but did so with a throwback style reminiscent of the earliest days of film.
It was so good that if you blurred your vision a little bit, you’d swear you were watching old highlights of Sid Luckman from the 1930s and 1940s. It was a perfect homage to Chicago’s past glories by showcasing its future.
Caleb Williams is reviving long-dormant excitement in Chicago.
Fans haven’t felt like this about a quarterback in a long time. Even guys like Jay Cutler and Jim McMahon never reached the status Caleb Williams is flirting with. Both had great moments, but never quite developed into legitimate franchise quarterbacks. McMahon was hurt too often. Cutler was too inconsistent. Williams has the playmaking instincts and growing mastery of crunch time that top quarterbacks must have. Luckman was the same way. Only Bears fans alive at the time may properly convey what it was like.
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There is a lot of work to do. Williams must continue improving from the pocket. He hasn’t reached full mastery of the offense yet. That will come with time. Head coach Ben Johnson has him pointed in the right direction. One can only imagine what those two can accomplish once the digestion process is complete.
