Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson said winning the Super Bowl is the top priority. That is not surprising. He’s made that clear from the moment he arrived. However, it isn’t his only goal for this team. One that he has mentioned more than once, both to his players and the media, is toppling the single-season scoring record of 606 points set by the Denver Broncos in 2013. It sounds ridiculous. After all, the Bears have never even reached 500 points in the season. They’re suddenly going to reach 600+? Well, if the version of Caleb Williams they just saw on Sunday in Carolina sticks around, that is absolutely possible.
It was unlike anything fans in this city have witnessed before. Johnson has said his goal was never to turn Williams into a pure pocket guy or just let him be the off-script improviser that made him a star. It was about finding a way to marry the two. What you saw on that hot afternoon in Charlotte is exactly what he was talking about. Williams was impossible to defend almost all day. He completed 21-of-29 passes for 265 yards and 2 touchdowns, posting a 124.5 passer rating.
If that didn’t make things hard enough for the Panthers, he also added 65 yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground. Every button he touched worked.
Caleb Williams wasn’t facing a cupcake.
While Carolina didn’t have a great defense last year, it was at least serviceable. They spent all offseason upgrading it, too, adding big-ticket pass rusher Jaelan Phillips and stud linebacker Devin Lloyd. Aside from a couple of injuries to some key rotational guys, they were mostly healthy. This unit helped the Panthers make the playoffs last season. They were at home on a hot day. It didn’t matter. Chicago rolled right over them like a giant boulder through a mountain cabin.
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This is uncharted territory for the Bears. They have never had a quarterback playing at this level consistently in modern franchise history. Jay Cutler teased it once or twice, but rarely stayed there. Jim McMahon couldn’t stay healthy. Only Sid Luckman found that magic zone. That is a long time to wait. It may have been worth it. Williams had his way with the Panthers in this game and did so without making any key mistakes. His full arsenal was deployed to perfection. That is the scariest part about this.
Williams didn’t even utilize his best weapon.
Colston Loveland was left catchless for the game. It was apparent that Carolina was desperate to take the tight end out of the game and force Williams to beat them in other ways. He most certainly did. Seven different players caught a pass in the game. It was another reminder of how good Williams has gotten at spreading the ball around. History says that when a quarterback reaches that point, stopping them becomes a nightmare. You saw it with Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Josh Allen, and Patrick Mahomes.
Remember, this isn’t even the midseason form. It is Caleb Williams knocking off the remaining rust from the offseason. If this is the first form of the year, what are we in store for when he gets a few games under his belt? The quarterback did warn everybody that he would be better this year. Maybe it wasn’t bravado after all. His mastery of this offense looks better than ever, and the NFL should be terrified.
