People are calling it rock bottom. Losing by double digits to a lowly New England Patriots team at home will do that. They haven’t yet realized the Packers are up next. Either way, the Chicago Bears have the look of a team in complete freefall. Nowhere is that clearer than on offense. In the past three games, they have scored a total of 27 points, including no touchdowns in the past two. Caleb Williams is at the heart of this mess, enduring repeated shellackings with constant pressure and sacks. He was dropped six times in Arizona and another nine on Sunday against the Patriots.
This can’t continue without lasting damage. Head coach Matt Eberflus is under immense pressure to do something. Adam Schefter of ESPN went on the Pat McAfee Show, where he revealed the Bears are considering multiple options. That includes the possibility Williams could get benched in favor of backup Tyson Bagent.
The Bears must do right by Caleb Williams, no matter the cost.
Keep in mind they went into Sunday with three members of their opening day offensive line out. Braxton Jones and Darnell Wright have knee injuries. Nate Davis was benched. It got even worse when Teven Jenkins left with an ankle issue. It was so bad that the Bears only dressed seven offensive linemen for the game when it is usually eight. That is how a non-descript pass rush was able to drop Caleb Williams for nine sacks. Until the Bears can find a solution to this problem, sitting him might be the best course of action. It is abundantly clear he is wilting under the constant pressure, too afraid to take risks for fear of a turnover. Giving the rookie a couple of weeks off to heal up and gather himself might not be the worst idea.
Eberflus quickly denied this was an option during his subsequent press conference, though it’s hard to know if anything he says is true these days. The most likely outcome at this stage is a change in offensive play-caller. Shane Waldron isn’t getting the job done and doesn’t have any answers. It is a desperate move, but the only one the Bears have.
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@jmscooby
What you’re describing sounds like it’s for the birds. I’ll have to ask the turkey, the duck and the chicken how THEY feel about this kind of abuse. You might get written up.
While I’m all for experience, leaving CW in to endure the beatings while the OL learns to become a unit serves no one. On top of that, if he gets a catastrophic injury (think Thiesman or Alex Smith) then we have a physically and possibly emotionally/mentally damaged QB. Nah—these scenarios are why you pay a spare QB like Bagent. And like one of the earlier suggestions, I would start off by telling him to throw to the first open receiver he sees–and maybe strip the offense down to a dink and dunk style offense, so the OL doesn’t have to… Read more »
I think I’m going to try a Turducken. A chicken, stuffed into a duck, stuffed into a turtle. Yum.
@Sallie
You are celebrating Thanksgiving by ducking and goosing and eating peasants? Sounds perfectly wretched.
The reason I have been so critical of the offensive coordinators is that they don’t seem to know how to script plays that provide targets for quarterbacks.
They can’t teach offensive line play to back-up linemen, but also can’t provide anywhere for a quarterback to throw. Even experienced receivers aren’t allowed to run routes that make sense.
These people are like old school economists who keep quoting theory instead of assessing what is real. Opposing defenses are real. They really want to sack, pillage and disrupt. But for Bears offensive coordinators, they don’t exist.