The Chicago Bears' win over the Tampa Bay Bucccaneers was the ultimate emotional rollercoaster. It looked like Ben Johnson's team would crush the visitors with an electric start, and then... the offense imploded.
Ultimately, the Bears did what good teams do: they got the job done. It wasn't easy or pretty, and it left a bittersweet taste in everyone's mouth, but they proved they could beat good teams even when they weren't at their best.
That's why Coach Johnson isn't too worried about Caleb Williams' miscues. He threw a career-worst four picks, but context matters, and he knows this was a blip on the radar. Speaking on ESPN Chicago, Johnson shut down all concerns about his quarterback.
Ben Johnson knows Caleb Williams won't turn the ball over often
"You know, this is the thing about Caleb Williams is— he's never been a guy, whether it's college or the NFL, to throw interceptions. So this is an aberration for him. Yeah. And it's good tape to learn from," the coach said. "But I think we'll be better in the long run, as, once again, you still get a win even though we're not playing at our best or executing at our fullest. And I think we'll be okay."
Caleb Williams has a wild reputation for being an erratic thrower who makes terrible decisions, but he's got a 1.4 interception rate in his three years in the league. He threw six and seven picks in his first two seasons and is up to five now, but four came in a single game.
Clearly, this was an outlier, a perfect storm when everything that could've gone wrong went wrong. Two of his picks were basically arm punts when he tried to get the ball out of bounds and didn't put enough air into the throws, and the Bucs' pass rush did an amazing job of keeping him under duress.
The Bears' offensive line had its worst performance of the season, allowing 21 pressures against Todd Bowles' defense. It's hard to make good reads when you're constantly running for your life, so it's not like this was entirely on Williams.
Of course, this doesn't mean he shouldn't be held accountable or that he'll have to sit through some grueling tape sessions to learn from his mistakes, but this definitely isn't the end of the world. Anyone can have an off game in the pros, and this has never been something to be worried about with him.
That was a game the Bears probably would've lost more often than not, even under Johnson's tutelage. If anything, it's refreshing to know that this team can find multiple ways to get the job done and take care of business even when they're not at their best and their best player is struggling to keep the ball out of harm's way.
That's what separates pretenders from contenders.
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