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Courtney Cronin, ESPN Staff Writer
LONDON — As Chicago Bears wide receiver DJ Moore stood at the podium Wednesday and provided a candid evaluation of rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, an interested observer stood about 15 feet away, creating what could have been an awkward situation.
Among the adjectives Moore used to describe Williams was “bossy.”
“What I mean by bossy is if we don’t hit something in practice, he’s going to tell us how we need to run it,” Moore said. “And we just look at him and be like, ‘OK.’
“When we get out there for the game, just make sure you work, because he’s gonna have some words for you if you don’t. That’s him being a leader. He’s a little bossy. It’s the little bro.”
DJ Moore on Caleb Williams asserting a leadership role on offense. Or as he jokingly put it “being bossy.” 😂 pic.twitter.com/eYoAOGoA1R
— Bears on CHSN (@CHSN_Bears) October 9, 2024
For Williams, who is the second-youngest player on the Bears roster at 22, learning how to deliver constructive criticism has been a feeling out process.
“Certain people you can be a little bossy with, certain people you have to talk very monotone and in control of yourself, and other times there’s people that you can just kind of lash out at,” Williams said. “I don’t really lash out much. That’s not really my vibe.
“But just always coming over to talk to the guys when I can. Growing up a little bit. Understanding that even when I’m frustrated about maybe a drive or a play that we had that we may have messed up or whatever the case may have been, understanding that there’s another drive coming, there’s another part of the season that we have to focus on also. Being able to go over and talk to them and understand how and what they need to hear and then from there moving on.”
Williams laughed at Moore’s “bossy” characterization, describing it as “sassy.” The Bears enjoyed a few laughs as they ride a two-game win streak into Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars (9:30 a.m., ET, NFL), and a big part of that success has been Williams’ development.
Despite being just five games into his career, Williams already has reached or is on pace for several milestones:
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He’s the first Bears rookie with 300 yards passing and zero picks in a game. That came during the Week 5 win over the Carolina Panthers when he led the NFL with an 83.9 QBR.
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He set the franchise rookie single-game record with 363 passing yards in the Week 3 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.
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He is the only Bears rookie with multiple 300-yard passing games.
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He is one of five players with multiple 300-yard passing games this season.
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He is on pace to finish with the third-most passing yards in Bears history (3,709).
He’s come a long way from his NFL debut, when he was 14-of-29 for 93 yards and had a 28.5 QBR in a win over the Tennessee Titans.
“I think he’s learning how to play professional football,” general manager Ryan Poles said. “And when I say that, that means to have a winning mentality in terms of: What does it take to win football games from the quarterback position?
“And you’ve seen that in terms of the efficiency, protecting the football, taking what’s given to him and then going into this last game, now explosives are starting to show up. So I really like his progress, I love the work ethic and the time that he’s put into it, the grit and toughness, the ability to bounce back from tough games. He’s right where he should be and he’s continuing to get better.”
One area in which Williams’ progress is most noticeable is the deep ball.
After completing five of 29 attempts on passes of at least 15 air yards in Weeks 1 to 4, with the lowest completion percentage (17%) and worst TD-INT ratio (0-3) among qualified quarterbacks on such throws, Williams was 4-of-4 for 108 yards and two touchdowns against Carolina.
That was the goal the Bears’ offense had been building towards for weeks, and Chicago aims to do the same against a Jaguars defense that has allowed the most gains of 20-plus yards this season (24) along with a league-high 287.8 passing yards per game.
“We all know he can make the big play,” tight end Cole Kmet said. “We’ve seen that in the past couple weeks.”
When the Bears drafted Williams with the No. 1 overall pick, there was speculation he might become the franchise’s first quarterback to throw for 4,000 yards in a season. He needs to average 242 passing yards over the next 12 games to reach that mark.
He’s also three 300-yard passing performances away from setting that franchise record.
That speaks to how low the bar is for quarterback play in Chicago, and how quickly Williams is making strides to change that narrative.