Music lovers everywhere should know the name Donna Summer. She is one of the great icons of the industry, dubbed the “Queen of Disco.” Across a brilliant multi-decade career, she delivered 10 Gold albums, 2 Platinum albums, won 5 Grammy Awards, and is enshrined in 5 Halls of Fame. Four of her songs reached #1 on the music charts. Few have ever or will ever reach her zenith of success. Even today, 14 years after her death in 2012, she continues to inspire people in all walks of life. That includes Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, if unintentionally.
Albert Breer of the MMQB has kept tabs on the third-year quarterback following his stellar second season in 2025. Nobody can deny he took a major step forward, breaking the franchise record for passing yards in a season, leading seven 4th quarter comebacks, and winning a playoff game. That said, it wasn’t perfect. Williams had the worst completion percentage of any starter in the NFL. Too many easy throws were off-target or passed on entirely. Bears coaches knew that fixing this issue was priority #1 going into 2026.
A little assist from Donna Summer would help them do it.
One of the best quotes of the spring to help frame the summer and fall came from Bears QBs coach J.T. Barrett, who said that his goal this offseason was to show Caleb Williams that, “We don’t have to work as hard for our money.” Last summer, Ben Johnson, Declan Doyle and Barrett fed Williams through a fire hose, beating him down with information to build him back up. This summer, I bet we’ll see more of the easy-money things Barrett references, to show the quarterback he doesn’t need to do as much of the spectacular to play winning football.
Who knew the Queen could teach such an important lesson?
That quote from J.T. Barrett is, of course, a paraphrase of Summer’s iconic 1980s smash hit, “She Works Hard For The Money.” The song was a tribute to blue-collar working women who were underappreciated in American society. It was clear they weren’t paid nearly enough for all they did. In the context of Williams, the lesson was simpler. He shouldn’t have to learn on big plays to win football games, which is something the Bears quarterback did seemingly every week last season.
Head coach Ben Johnson and his staff aren’t naive. They know that kind of football is almost impossible to sustain from year to year. What happened last season was magical. However, if they want to become true contenders, they must learn to play more efficient football. That starts with the quarterback learning how to play the chess match. Meaning Williams must take what the defense gives him, even if it sometimes requires dump-offs and checkdowns. Five 4-yard gains can be just as effective as one 20-yard gain.
🔥 Subscribe to the Untold Chicago YouTube channel to hear Chicago legends tell stories you’ve never seen in headlines — real moments, real experiences, straight from the athletes themselves.
It sounds like people are confident the results will be good.
Breer’s comments indicated as much. He warned last season that it might take some time for Williams to find his footing. That proved correct. The quarterback admitted it wasn’t until the rematch against Minnesota that he and Johnson finally got on the same page. All signs of OTAs and minicamps this spring pointed to Williams looking much sharper and more comfortable. Based on what we’ve seen over many years of NFL football, this is typically a sign that a quarterback is about to take another step forward.
It isn’t like he needs much incentive. All Williams has to do is follow the numbers. In his career to this point, the quarterback has played seven games in which he completed 67% or more of his passes. The Bears are 5-2 in those contests. They were a blocked field goal away from being 6-1. Donna Summer may not have been involved in football, but Her Majesty certainly knew how to convey messages. If Williams follows the guidance her song helps provide, he’ll soon become NFL royalty himself.
