In the final two minutes of a frustrating, disheartening loss against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Thomas Brown did something that Matt Eberflus had refused to do earlier this season. The Chicago Bears’ interim head coach sent in backup quarterback Tyson Bagent for rookie starter Caleb Williams.
After three handoffs to running back Darrynton Evans and a short pass to wide receiver Collin Johnson, the game was over.
Other starters had been removed from the game. It was just time to move on and get the heck out of California.
“He fought his butt off like he always does,” Brown said of Williams after the game.
But the best decision was to maintain Williams’ health. Brown knew that. There was little for him to gain in the final two minutes. Brown did what most head coaches would do in blowouts, winning or losing. Williams was sacked seven times as the Bears’ losing streak reached seven games. Brown might not be the Bears’ next coach, but he’s currently in charge of what’s best for Williams on game days.
If we’ve learned anything this season, it’s that Williams is tougher than any scout, coach, critic or pundit seemingly wanted to give him credit for coming out of USC. He’s tough physically, handling hits, hard and awkward, while consistently displaying a willingness to stand in the pocket and deliver difficult passes under duress behind a shoddy offensive line. He’s been sacked 56 times, by far the most in the NFL.
He’s also shown mental toughness, handling an unnerving, worsening situation for the organization that made him the first pick in this year’s NFL Draft with poise and a smile in his news conferences. He still ends his interviews with “Go Bears.”
Or put it this way, the Bears — with all the Bears things the Bears tend to do over the years — haven’t broken him.
He’s still their future with or without Eberflus and the looming changes ahead.
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And he’s still the most appealing factor about the Bears when it comes to finding their next head coach.
“My job is to lead,” Williams said after the game. “The captain’s job is to lead from the front even when it’s tough. My job is not to get you up to come into the facility to do your job, to come in after hours, treatment, all those different things. My job and our job is to go out there and lead the guys the right way. It’s an internal thing to get up and do the job over and over. As leaders, we do obviously have to encourage and keep encouraging. We have to stand tall and have that courage. That’s the most important thing for yourself: have courage. And from there, you can encourage other guys.”
The Bears’ only spark came from Williams in the second half. He completed seven passes during a 16-play scoring drive that took more than nine minutes and concluded with a highlight-reel throw for a touchdown to rookie receiver Rome Odunze in the corner of the end zone. Williams drove the Bears to the 49ers’ 30 on their next possession before losing a fumble when he tried to recoil a throw.
🗣 ROOOOOME ODUUUUUNZE
📺: #CHIvsSF on FOX pic.twitter.com/G3Ubg4mT0k
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) December 8, 2024
That lost ball was it for the Bears on Sunday.
Not that the Bears had a chance of a comeback win against the 49ers, who scored 14 more points in the fourth quarter and played determined to win a blowout, but at least Williams did something. The same can’t be said about many other players.
Williams is still the reason to have hope, whether it’s on the road in a disastrous defeat, the rest of the season in general or when considering what’s ahead for the team. He finished 17-for-23 passing for 134 yards and two touchdowns for a 116.9 passer rating. Other Bears quarterbacks would have had worse numbers in such a bad loss.
“This is the first time I’ve been on the grass, so having a chance to meet with him face to face kind of makes it a little bit different when it comes to that versus being in the box and being on the headset,” Brown said after the game. “He’s relatively always calm, cool and collected, and obviously super competitive. There was no quit and no crying and complaining with him, which I love and appreciate, and he is a super confident dude. So he’s not rattled one bit. We got to find ways to be better for us offensively.”
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Some of that is reliant on Williams’ progress and development. He wasn’t the reason the Bears lost to the 49ers, but the team still needs him to become the reason they win.
That might not come until next season.
But he’s not done playing out his rookie year.
“That’s an internal thing, getting up and keep going, keep fighting, keep throwing punches,” Williams said. “We have to keep coming together. We have to keep finding ways to have productive drives.”
(Photo: Ezra Shaw / Getty Images)
