LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) — Caleb Williams’ quest for better passing accuracy took a different turn Sunday in the Chicago Bears’ 31-28 win over Pittsburgh.
And Williams sees the need for improvement on Friday when the Bears (8-3) test their offense against the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles (8-3).
“I was exactly where I should have been in the sense of dropping back and all of this,” Williams said. “I think my base got a little wide and my legs weren’t fully under me yet early in the game for some reason.
“Just doing a better job in warmups, making sure that my legs are a little bit more warm if I do ever feel that kind of feeling I felt early in the game and just focus on that. And then other than that, my base got a little wide and (passes) started getting high on me. So just circling back to the small details that go into it.”
Williams has completed 59.2% of his passes on the season, after coach Ben Johnson called 70% their goal. It’s not just the numbers, but inconsistency with where he puts the ball for receivers that slows down what otherwise has been a potent Bears offense.
Williams' completion rate rose from 47.6% (10 of 21) in the first half to 64.3% (9 of 14) in the second half when he led two touchdown drives to take over the game against Pittsburgh.
Johnson called 18 straight passes.
“I didn’t notice,” Williams admitted. “You kind of get into a flow. It didn’t feel like it it was 18. I don’t really mind too many of those. Those are always fun, going 18 passes in a row.”
Even with Williams completing more than 60% of his passes only once in the past eight games, the Bears have kept winning. They won eight of their past nine to take the lead in the NFC North.
For Williams, avoiding interceptions has been the key. He has 16 touchdowns to only four interceptions, and hasn’t thrown an interception in 152 passes. Williams seems to enjoy throwing routes to the middle of the field, as all three of his TD passes went there Sunday.
“Some guys get a little bit nervous and get a little bit afraid to do that, and he’s not that type,” Johnson said.
Williams and the Bears offense have produced 87 big plays, or runs of 10 or more yards and passes of 20 or more yards. The Bears lead the league in this category and their 2.26 points per drive are their most in 23 years.
Now they’re facing a defense led by former Bears coordinator Vic Fangio that was key in winning the Super Bowl.
“Our goal offensively when we go in is really to be explosive,” Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle said. “They’ve kind of modeled their defense to be the antithesis of what we’re trying to get done.”
A win over the Eagles could be a huge confidence boost for the Bears.
It’s not Williams’ focus, necessarily, as he tries to become more accurate with his throws.
“We focus on us, we focus on ourselves,” he said. “We focus on our details.”
Notes: The Bears didn't practice Tuesday and only had a walk-through. Both cornerbacks Kyler Gordon and Jaylon Johnson would have had full practices, as they did last week prior to the Pittsburgh game, and the Bears could look to bring back two of their better defensive players from IR. However, cornerback Tyrique Stevenson (hip) would not have been able to practice.
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