Are the hits starting to add up for Chicago Bears rookie QB Caleb Williams?

LAKE FOREST – The video clip went viral before the game even ended. Caleb Williams hunched over on the Bears bench, moments after taking a hit during Monday night’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

After 14 weeks of football, the hits have started to pile up for Williams, the Chicago Bears' No. 1 overall draft pick. Williams has taken 58 sacks this season. That’s 13 more than any other quarterback in the NFL.

The Bears were without starting left tackle Braxton Jones on Monday night and it showed. Williams did his best to avoid would-be tacklers. The Vikings pressured him 15 times, according to NFL Next Gen Stats, but he took only two sacks. Still, the three QB hits he took appeared to take a toll.

The broadcast clip of Williams lying down sideways on the bench captured it perfectly. It became an internet meme almost immediately.

Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown said he’s not worried about the hits having a long-term effect on his rookie quarterback.

“Not with him, I don’t,” Brown said.

He noted that “every player’s different.”

Williams acknowledged after the game that he had “a couple bruises and contusions,” then likened each hit to being in a car crash.

“You put it into context, let’s say you get in three car accidents in a month, you’re going to feel it,” Williams said. “That’s what a hit is in football.”

Williams has faced 213 total pressures from defenses this season. Not surprisingly, that’s the most in the NFL. His pressure rate is the sixth-highest in the league.

For a rookie quarterback on a team that is out of playoff contention, there’s a fine line that teams need to thread. Williams needs the reps. The Bears aren’t going to bench Williams and save him for next season. But they also need to make sure that they’re protecting their most valuable asset.

Brown said that his play design and play calls can make a big difference too. If a play is designed as a quick-hitter, there’s much less chance that Williams will take a hit.

“[It’s about] alleviating stress off the quarterback position, which first off starts off with me with the run game, mixing in what we did last game against Minnesota,” Brown said. “[We] prefer to get the ball into his hands a little bit faster. And also picking and choosing the spots when I want to end up being aggressive and put the ball down the field.”

Williams' teammates notice the toughness with which he plays the game. He has played nearly every offensive snap for the Bears this season. His 936 snaps lead the team among offensive players, one snap ahead of center Coleman Shelton.

Fellow rookie Rome Odunze said Williams' teammates want to play with a quarterback who is willing to fight through a season like this.

“Any down, regardless of if it’s a success or failure, is tough on him in his position,” Odunze told the Shaw Local News Network. “Being able to [keep getting up], I think it shows his character and who he is, the football player he decides to be each and every time he decides to step on that field. It’s something that brings a spark to everybody.”

I think it shows his character and who he is, the football player he decides to be each every time he decides to step on that field. It’s something that brings a spark to everybody.”

—  Rome Odunze, Bears wide receiver

The Bears have put a lot on Williams' plate this season. He was the starting quarterback from the day the team drafted him, and he has been learning on the fly. The offensive line has had some bad games, but the sacks are – at least in part – on the quarterback too.

Williams knows there are things he can improve on. Every once in a while, there will be a moment when he marks something down in his notebook that he wants to work on in the offseason. It’s hard to make every adjustment in the heat of the season when the team is focused on each week’s opponent.

“I probably have written down five to eight things,” Williams said. “I would say all from pre-snap stuff to even post-snap, whether it’s footwork, whether it’s pre-snap and recognizing what they’re in [defensively], if they rotate to here, how fast can I get to this, how fast can I get to that route, this alert, that alert. So, I got a good amount of stuff that I’m planning on going over.”

At this point, Bears fans are hoping he doesn’t get clobbered before he even reaches the offseason.