Through three weeks in the 2025 season, we have seen a Chicago Bears offensive system that is noticeably different from prior years, thanks in large part to second-year quarterback Caleb Williams.
Although the offense does have most of the same personnel and similar limitations in the run game, the passing game has been much more explosive. While head coach Ben Johnson and his scheme deserve plenty of credit, it’s impossible to ignore the vast improvements from second-year quarterback Caleb Williams.
Rookie Year Struggles
There were two major issues in Williams’ rookie season: taking unnecessary sacks and the inability to push the ball downfield. In 2024, Williams took the third most sacks in NFL history with 68, and he completed only 31% of his passes 20+ yards downfield, ranking 29th in the NFL.
The personnel on the offense, specifically the offensive line, and the continuous carousel of play callers contributed to this, but much of it was on Williams. Through the first three games, however, it seems that Williams has mitigated these issues.
Cutting Down on Mistakes Under Pressure
Through the first three games of the 2025 season, Caleb has almost cut his pressure-to-sack rate in half, from 28.2% in 2024 to 15.8%, and has only been sacked on 5.56% of his dropbacks. He has also made limited mistakes while pressured, proving to be one of the better QBs in the league at handling these situations so far in 2025.
Reviving the Deep Passing Game
Caleb has also done a terrific job when throwing the ball downfield. In 2025, among quarterbacks with a minimum of 100 pass attempts, Williams ranks sixth in ADOT (Average Depth per Target) with 8.86 and has completed seven of his 14 pass attempts over 20 air yards, which is seventh in the league.
Confidence, Footwork, and Coaching Influence
There have not just been statistical improvements for Caleb Williams in 2025 — he has looked much more confident and consistent with his mechanics.
This is something that Williams and head coach Ben Johnson have harped on since the start of training camp. After the Bears’ Week 2 loss to the Lions, Williams was noticing an improvement.
“Just being able to get comfortable with my footwork, that [was] my focus from Week 1 to Week 2, and I think why some of those passes from Week 1 to Week 2 looked a little different. I mean, [footwork] is up there with the top list of things to be able to be accurate, and that’s huge for me.”
Johnson echoed that sentiment in his September 22nd press conference.
“And then in terms of the execution, he’s getting a lot better, a lot more comfortable with his footwork, his repetitions, not just for the concepts that we’ve been doing from the springtime to training camp, but we’re putting in new ones each week.”
Encouraging Progress, But Work Still to Do
Through just three weeks, it’s clear that Caleb Williams has taken meaningful strides from his rocky rookie campaign. The numbers highlight real improvement, and the confidence in his footwork and execution shows growth beyond the stat sheet. Still, this is far from a finished product.
Williams continues to adjust to Ben Johnson’s system, and the offense will face tougher challenges as the season wears on. But for a franchise desperate for stability under center, the early signs are highly encouraging. If Williams keeps building on this foundation, the Bears may finally be moving toward the kind of sustained success that has long eluded them.
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