The Chicago Bears are not ready to decide whether starting quarterback Caleb Williams will play against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 6, but head coach Ben Johnson believes he is moving “in the right way” toward an imminent return.
Williams appeared to take a meaningful step toward returning to the Bears’ lineup before Sunday’s 31-7 loss against the Green Bay Packers, looking spry in his intensive pregame workout as he continues to work back from a hamstring strain.
Williams also returned to practice on October 9 for the first time since injuring his hamstring in Week 2’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings, working as a limited participant — and earning a surprise “questionable” designation for the game.
None of that has Johnson ready to declare that Williams will return against the Falcons in Week 6, but he did express optimism about his quarterback’s recovery progress when speaking with ESPN’s Jeff Joniak on Monday, October 12.
“[He’s] going the right way,” Johnson told Joniak on Monday. “I didn’t see the workout. We’re on the right path, though. We’ll see what that means for this week or future weeks.”
Bears News: ‘All Signs Point’ to Caleb Williams’ Return in Week 6
Johnson isn’t tipping his hand — and may genuinely not know — about Williams’ status for the week ahead. According to ESPN’s Ian Rapoport, though, “all signs point” toward Williams’ return against the Falcons in Week 6.
“Of all the things that happened in [Week 5’s loss to the Packers], the fact that Caleb Williams was working out before the game in a pretty strenuous workout, looking pretty good, looking like himself,” Rapoport said October 12 on Good Morning Football. “I mean, he looked like Caleb Williams, right? This is a very, very good sign.
“My understanding at the beginning of this whole thing was three to four weeks with a hamstring [injury]. He has missed three weeks. The fourth week is next week. He was working out hard before the game, and he returned to practice the Friday before. All signs point to Caleb Williams being back on the field this week for Chicago, which — considering the way it went this past Sunday — would be quite good news.”
Will Bears Start Tyson Bagent if Caleb Williams Sits?
Whether Williams returns is the biggest quarterback question for the Bears heading into Week 6’s matchup with the Falcons. But if he does not play, the next-most-important question becomes: Will Chicago start Tyson Bagent again?
Bagent struggled tremendously against the Packers in the Bears’ blowout loss at Lambeau Field, completing just 12 of his 21 passes for 87 yards and throwing zero touchdowns to two interceptions — the second of which got him benched.
The Packers did a nice job keeping Bagent off balance throughout the game, but Bagent also seemed to make several decision-making mistakes, overlooking safer checkdowns in favor of pushing the ball downfield into questionable spots.
“I do think that I can try to help him get in a better rhythm there early in the game,” Johnson said. “What does that mean? Different type of play-calls or maybe just some easy completions for him, things of that nature.” I don’t know. It’s something that we’ll talk about as a staff as we go through this week and what we need to do going forward to get us off to a fast start.”
Johnson wouldn’t say, though, whether he would start Bagent if Williams misses his fourth straight start.
Alternatively, the Bears could turn veteran Case Keenum against the Falcons. He did not fare much better than Bagent on Sunday in relief duties, but he helped the Bears rout the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football in Week 3.
The Bears will face off against the Falcons at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 18.
Bears Get Good News on QB Caleb Williams Before Falcons Game