Bears' Ben Johnson details how he wants Caleb Williams to improve ahead of second pro season

First-year Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson got some good looks at quarterback Caleb Williams across a pair of games that Williams started against the Detroit Lions during his rookie season when Johnson was serving as Detroit's offensive coordinator. 

Those experiences and a review of game film helped Johnson assess how he wants Williams to improve ahead of the 23-year-old's second pro campaign. 

"I saw a guy with immense potential," Johnson recently said about Williams, as shared by Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated. "Every week, he made throws that made you drop your jaw a little bit. ...But what you also see is a lack of anticipation at times, which — that comes with reps— you gotta do things over and over again. That’s not abnormal for a rookie quarterback. And it’s some of the presnap stuff he could improve on, the shifts, the motions. There were times when his eyes weren’t quite in the right spot."

The Bears made Williams the first pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, and he guided the club to a 4-2 record before Chicago endured a 10-game losing streak. According to Pro Football Reference, Williams ended his debut pro season ranked 31st in the NFL among qualified players with a 46.7 adjusted QBR and 33rd with a 40.3 percent passing success rate. 

For what it's worth, Williams completed 46-of-79 pass attempts for 590 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions across two losses to Detroit. He also took seven sacks over those two contests. 

Williams acknowledged earlier this month that he needs to do better to help his offensive line after he was sacked a league-high 68 times last season. According to Johnson, part of that process involves Williams "being consistent and true to his thought process" before he snaps the ball for a play.

"I’ll be honest with you," Johnson said about how Williams will look during Chicago's regular-season opener against the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 8, compared to where the signal-caller is as of the final Monday of July. "I don’t know that we’ve sat down and talked through any minutiae like that. We’re just focused on the entirety of it, and getting better in every little area right now."

As of Monday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Bears at +160 betting odds to make the playoffs this season. If Williams looks ready for prime-time action in the "Monday Night Football" matchup versus Minnesota, Johnson's first campaign with Chicago could become one that Bears fans won't soon forget.