ATLANTA — The Bears are undoubtedly a better team with Caleb Williams in the lineup. Are they a great team? Perhaps. We’ll have to wait until they play a game that’s not as messy and chaos-ridden as the one they just blew through in Atlanta.
Williams was a ball of kinetic energy before, during and after the 31-23 victory in which he threw for 305 yards on 30-of-36 passing, with a touchdown and no interceptions. He jogged in place and threw air punches on the sideline, and he posed WWE-style after hitting Colston Loveland for the game’s first touchdown. He even began his postgame remarks with a chipper “let’s go, good to see you again” to the assembled media, and nobody thinks it’s good to see the media.
Out the last three weeks with a hamstring injury suffered in Week 2 against the Vikings, Williams returned with a flourish, starting the game with 12 straight completions and posting 14 points before the Falcons had a single positive rushing yard.
“He was connecting everywhere. People were making plays all over the field,” Rome Odunze said in an ecstatic Bears locker room after the game. “That’s when our offense is really clicking. That’s why we want to be in that flow-state mode. And we were in there today.”
After opening with those two touchdown drives, Williams and the Bears slowed a bit, but still managed to double up Atlanta’s time of possession, 40:08 to 19:52. Williams showed an uncanny ability to find the open man and keep drives going even in multiple third-and-long situations
“It's unique to be able to be as poised as he is in moments, get the play calling out, diagnose certain things, and then at the same time, be able to run 22 miles per hour, past 300-pound D-linemen,” Odunze said. “It's incredible. That's what makes him, him. I'm super excited to have him back.”
He wasn’t the only one in the building charged up by Willams’ return. Whether because of the easy proximity to the world’s busiest airport, or the perpetually fragile loyalty of Atlanta fans, Mercedes-Benz Stadium and other Atlanta arenas often fill up with visiting fans from Pittsburgh, Dallas and — in dis case — Chicago.
Thousands of Bears fans — sporting orange, and black, and Ditka sweaters — welcomed Williams with roars loud enough to turn Mercedes-Benz Stadium into Soldier Field South. (“We love our fans,” Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski said afterward. “Our fans are so supportive, but we knew we would likely need to be on a silent count.”)
The afternoon wasn’t perfect. Chicago committed 12 often-sloppy penalties for 133 yards, more than 100 more than Atlanta. And after the Bears posted a 31-7 lead heading into the fourth quarter, after the Chicago fans in the stands had yelled themselves hoarse shouting “Let’s go Bears!” (with a little “Green Bay sucks” thrown in for seasoning) … well, the Falcons decided that they weren’t quite done after all.
Michael Penix Jr. led Atlanta to two touchdowns within four minutes of game clock, and Williams wasn’t able to kill the clock effectively enough. Atlanta actually got the ball back with 3:34 remaining down by just eight points, but a Penix fumble ended that threat easily enough.
Thing is, the game shouldn’t have been that close. It was a reminder that even with Williams back in the lineup, the Bears still have some flaws to work out. This is, after all, largely the same team that got run out of Lambeau Field just last week.
“(Sunday) was just one of those crossroads, if you will, because of what had happened the week before,” Bears head coach Ben Johnson said after the game. “I told them after last week that I believe strongly in our coaching staff. I believe strongly in the locker room and with everybody that we have in the building. … It hadn't happened like that yet this year.” (Well, it kind of did during that 59-point season opener, but you get what he’s saying.)
Williams has dealt with doubts and questions his entire career, from his hesitation in the pocket to his personal sense of style to the way he handled his recent hamstring injury. But the simple truth is that he’s on a trajectory toward becoming one of the NFL’s top quarterbacks, and he has a receiving corps and a defense around him that can make Chicago one of the NFL’s top teams. (The defense got a massive boost Sunday with the return of defensive back Kyler Gordon, who had three sacks and two forced fumbles, including the game-clincher on Penix.) If Williams can deliver at the level he’s already hit on occasion, Chicago is in very, very good shape.
“He carries a chip on his shoulder, absolutely,” Odunze said. “He plays with that fire. He plays with that passion. So when he goes out there, he's looking to prove some people wrong and prove himself right. And we feel that energy every single time.”