Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams left the team’s Week 2 contest against the Minnesota Vikings with an apparent leg injury in the middle of the fourth quarter.
Williams went down on a scramble to the left side as the Bears approached the end zone down by a score of 6-3. A Vikings defender caught Williams from behind, though Williams may have suffered the injury in a non-contact context after escaping the tackle, after which he came up lame and hit the turf, writhing on the ground in pain.
The quarterback was able to rise up from the field relatively quickly, but he limped off the field with help of team trainers. Backup quarterback Tyson Bagent entered for Williams, and it was not immediately clear if Williams would return, what the nature of his injury was or how serious it might be.
Williams has not missed a start in his NFL career to this point, playing all 36 regular-season games and both of the team’s playoff contests in January.
Caleb Williams Left Field on Cart, in Tears
Williams went back to the locker room on a cart for further evaluation with a towel draped over his head and clearly in emotional distress.
He pulled the towel off of his head and gestured to the crowd with an emphatic thumbs up. However, Williams was also visibly in tears.
Video of the third-year quarterback on the sideline showed Williams unable to put any pressure on his right leg whatsoever.
UPDATE: Williams suffered a hamstring injury, per an update from Courtney Cronin of ESPN.
“Caleb Williams ruled OUT with a right hamstring injury,” Cronin reported on X.
While a hamstring injury is not ideal, there was some speculation that Williams may have suffered an Achilles tear. As such, a hamstring strain, even a serious one, is relatively good news for the Bears QB.
Bears’ Caleb Williams Suffers Injury Against Vikings, Exits Game