Windy City Gridiron
Following a disastrous rookie campaign, Caleb Williams has a chance to get back on track in Year 2 under a newly made coaching staff and loaded offense. All that is left to do is for him to prove why he was the No. 1 overall selection in last year’s draft.
This time a year ago, the Chicago Bears and their fan base were on pins and needles, waiting for the start of training camp. Optimism was at an all-time high after yet another offseason of big spending and the selection of two first-round picks, including Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze, in the Top 10. Many, including myself, said it was the best situation a No. 1 overall pick had ever been drafted into.
Following an up-and-down start that led to a (4-2) record heading into their Week 7 bye, it felt like everything was coming together. A Top 10 defense, an ascending offense that had blown out back-to-back opponents, and a quarterback who had strung together two impressive performances. For the first time in most fans’ lifetimes, it felt like the Bears finally got the quarterback decision right and surrounded him with enough talent.
Then Week 8 happened.
Williams struggled for most of the game and was severely outplayed by the quarterback, who was taken one pick after him. While the No. 1 overall pick looked erratic and uncomfortable playing in front of his hometown crowd, Jayden Daniels looked poised and confident, despite almost missing the game with multiple bruised ribs. Despite the rocky start, Williams led the Bears on what should have been a game-winning drive. The rookie looked in control. He was making quick decisions and flashing all of the traits everyone around the league expected to see when he was anointed a “generational talent.”
Moments after the Bears took the lead, disaster struck. In the matter of 13 seconds, the Washington Commanders threw two passes for 24 yards to get into realistic Hail Mary range. With six seconds remaining on the clock, the Bears looked frazzled. Multiple players looked confused as they were lining up, and cornerback Tyrique Stevenson infamously had his back to the start of the play as he taunted Commanders fans in the end zone.
In 24 seconds on the game clock, the Bears went from a surprise (5-2) team with momentum on their side to a (4-3) team that would lose 10 in a row on their way to multiple mid-season coaching firings. The culture that the old regime claimed to have cultivated was gone in one play. Former head coach Matt Eberflus would take no responsibility after the game, turning the locker room against him. Following back-to-back blowout losses in which the Bears’ offense managed just 12 total points, newly hired offensive coordinator Shane Waldron was fired. Three games after that, Eberflus’ late-game blunder in front of a national audience on Thanksgiving morning did him in.
Over three weeks, Thomas Brown went from passing game coordinator to offensive coordinator to head coach....
