Caleb Williams is an emerging NFL star. The No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft quarterbacked the Bears to a magical 2025 season that was highlighted by seven improbable comeback wins, an NFC North title and a rousing playoff victory over the rival Packers.
Williams was recently chosen to appear on the cover of the Madden 27 video game and ranks in the top 10 in the NFL in jersey sales. He's been praised on podcasts by future Hall of Famer Tom Brady and Raiders star Maxx Crosby, among others.
Despite what he has achieved by the tender age of 24, Williams is far from satisfied.
"There's so much to unlock," he said, "there's so much to get better at, there's so much left of ball for me and us and accolades that we'll have as a team."
Like his coach, Ben Johnson, Williams is driven to lead the Bears to championships.
"It goes back to my first conversations I had with Caleb and those were he wants to win here in Chicago and he wants to win Super Bowls," Johnson said. "That's really his motivating factor. He's been very clear and consistent with that message over the last year and a half that I've gotten to know him.
"That's what we're pursuing. His portion of that is to be the best leader this team can get from the quarterback position. [Lift] this offense to the next level. Be a good supportive teammate throughout the whole thing."
Williams is already a highly respected team captain. But during a recent practice he learned a valuable lesson—thanks to veteran receiver Kalif Raymond—that should enhance the quarterback's leadership skills.
"I wasn't having the best practice," Williams said. "I got really frustrated and Kalif came up to me and said, 'everybody is looking at you.' That really resonated for me because … I want to be as stoic as possible: good, bad or different; not be too high or too low for the guys. When he said that to me, it stuck with me and it bothered me.
"So just every day [the goal is] having that type of mindset; be as stoic as possible, strong as possible for the guys because they are looking at me. It takes a lot to do that because … the energy in the sport is so strong. It's important to me, it's important to the guys and it's important to coach."
Last season Williams set a franchise single season passing record with 3,942 yards while quarterbacking an offense that ranked third in the NFL in scoring, averaging ??? per game. As he prepares for the start of training camp in late July, he is focused on honing certain aspects of his game.
"It's just get the completion percentage up," Williams said, "keep the offense on the field more, score as many points as possible, be the highest-scoring offense because that's my part in the team ... Whether it's handoffs or passes, whatever, that doesn't matter. It's just being able to put up as many points as possible to help our team win as many games as possible and then keeping the turnovers very low."
Williams' top priority this summer will be to improve his ball placement, which limits interceptions and creates run-after-the-catch opportunities.
"Being able to put the ball in the best position for the wide receivers first starts with a completion," Williams said. "And then from there you grow in the confidence from completing the ball … to 'how can I place the ball better for these guys in these situations and moments throughout the games and practices?'
"Another thing for me is just always getting better with procedure, being able to see defenses pre-snap and having an idea of what they'll be in or if I need to make an adjustment. It's always going to be those couple things for me."
Williams should continue to benefit from working with Johnson, who's widely viewed as one of the league's top play-callers. After just season together, the two seem to be in lockstep.
"There are times where he'll be saying something and it's full agreeance and [I'll] kind of finish his sentence on some of these things on his mentality and how he wants to win, how he wants to play and who are identity is going to be and being able to build towards that," Williams said.
"He's older than me … so he brings a lot of wisdom to me. He notices things that I may not notice in the moment. So, his information, his knowledge, his wisdom, it goes a long way for me and I'm 110% in on whatever he says."
