The Caleb Williams Injury Was Worse Than Expected And What It Means

The Chicago Bears initially feared they may have lost Caleb Williams for the season after watching him go down against the Minnesota Vikings. Thankfully, the young quarterback avoided a disastrous injury, such as an Achilles or ACL tear. Tests eventually revealed that Williams had suffered a hamstring injury. That was not season-ending by any stretch. The only uncertainty was how severe it was. After some time, information came out that it was likely a Grade 1 strain. This meant that Williams could be back as early as next week against the New York Jets.

It now appears that wasn’t the case. ESPN reported on Sunday that Williams had, in fact, suffered a Grade 2 strain. While not devastating, it does mean the quarterback is likely out longer than originally hoped. Such an injury usually causes players to miss 3 or 4 weeks of action. This means the Bears could be looking at up to a month of Tyson Bagent or Case Keenum. As much confidence as the team may have in those two, it is far from ideal for a team that has Super Bowl aspirations.

“Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has a Grade 2 hamstring injury that doctors consider a three-to-four-week injury, league sources told ESPN and NFL Network.

This doesn’t mean that Williams, who the Bears have touted as a quick healer, couldn’t return sooner than that timeline. It just means that doctors believe this normally is a three-to-four-week injury in most players, and that is the doctors’ best estimation of how long it could take Williams to recover.

The Bears officially ruled Williams out for their Week 3 game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night, and have tried to keep the extent of his injury under wraps for competitive-purpose advantages.”

This Caleb Williams update brings everything into focus.

The Bears are now all but certain to play at least two games without Williams. Probably three. They faced the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night. Then the New York Jets will come to town. By far the biggest one to watch will be the trip up to Green Bay for a grudge match with the Packers. If he misses that, then the extent of the injury will be pretty obvious. This is supposed to be one of the easier stretches of the schedule. Losing Williams at this time really hurt. Remember, they have both New England, Seattle, and Tampa Bay waiting for them before the bye week.

So what happens if Caleb Williams misses the full month? Looking at how daunting their second-half schedule is, they must find a way to at least stay at .500 during his absence. That means winning two of the next four games. Can it be done? Yes. While Bagent and Keenum are not Williams in terms of talent, this offense wasn’t designed to be quarterback-first. The Bears are a running team under head coach Ben Johnson. If they can pound the ball on the ground and get some solid performances from the defense, they can steal two games.

The vital key is that the Bears don’t beat themselves.

A huge reason they lost to Minnesota last week was a brutal series of self-inflicted wounds. They committed 8 penalties and 2 turnovers, giving the Vikings all the extra help they needed to pull off the win. Williams was good enough to overcome such setbacks. With him gone, it is more imperative than ever that the team play as efficiently as possible. Limit the penalties and don’t turn it over. A run-first approach should help with that. Johnson is unlikely to insist on Bagent avoiding aggressive throws. That isn’t how he’s wired. Still, it will be conveyed that he should not be reckless.

The game against Philadelphia will say a lot about this team. If they come out flat against the Eagles, it will not bode well for their chances to stay afloat long enough for Williams to return. They pride themselves on their mental toughness. Well, this is the biggest test they’ve faced in a long time. Johnson seems confident they can handle the challenge. The next four weeks will say a lot about his coaching ability.