Caleb Williams' impressive arm talent isn't the only reason for his success this season. The second-year pro has coupled his passing skills with elite scrambling ability to emerge as one of the NFL's most dangerous dual-threat quarterbacks.
Williams has relied on his legs even more the past two weeks, rushing for 63 and 53 yards in back-to-back comeback victories over the Bengals and Giants, respectively. Those 116 yards on the ground are the second most by an NFL quarterback during that span.
"It's been on my mind to be able to help the team in any way possible," Williams said Wednesday. "There was space and opportunity within the game, but there are some times where a play needs to be made or a spark needs to happen. I have all the ability between my arm and legs to be able to make it happen, so whatever comes available first, whether it's a run or a pass, I'm there to help out and try to help the team win and create a spark."
That is exactly what transpired last Sunday at Soldier Field when Williams helped the Bears turn a 20-10 deficit into a 24-20 victory with two late touchdowns. The USC product scrambled 29 yards to the Giants' 2 and then hit receiver Rome Odunze with a 2-yard TD pass. After the defense forced a three-and-out, Williams raced around left end for a go-ahead 17-yard TD with 1:47 remaining.
Williams has also utilized his legs to escape pressure in the pocket. He has become so adept at that aspect of the game that coach Ben Johnson compared his elusiveness to famous escape artist Harry Houdini.
After taking 68 sacks in 17 games last year as a rookie, Williams has only been sacked 14 times in nine contests this year. Johnson credited improved pass protection and a more effective running game for the dramatic reduction but added: "There's no mistaking what Caleb can do. He feels it, and the way he evades, I think it's second to none."
The Bears quarterback can't explain it.
"I don't know, maybe [it's] a sixth sense kind of thing," Williams said. "I have no idea. In the moment and in those times, I just feel a little color or maybe feel the tackle getting edged, and I just try and get out of it and make a play."
Just as remarkable as his scrambling ability has been Williams' knack to produce huge plays when the game is on the line. He has engineered four winning scoring drives this season and five in his last 10 starts dating back to last year's season finale. One week before beating the Giants, he threw a 58-yard TD pass to tight end Colston Loveland with :17 to play to give the Bears a 47-42 win over the Bengals.
"Towards the end of the game, it's time to go win the game and you just get in that mode," Williams said. "Defenses have shown you throughout the game what they've game-planned for you, so you get into a rhythm and a flow toward the end of the game, and the mindset changes in the sense of we have no other option at that point other than to score and fight and fight and fight, and that's what we do and what we've done.
"We do want to showcase and I want to showcase throughout the whole game that we can play all 60 minutes and put up points and the defense can hold their offense, and we can start steamrolling. But until that happens, we're going to keep winning games whichever way we need."
Johnson feels that part of the reason that Williams excels in those end-of-game situations is that the offense is more in "drop-back pass mode."
"I don't want to say he's got a higher comfort level there, but yet that is probably where he's had the majority of his snaps over high school and college and now the NFL," Johnson said. "So there probably is just a little bit of, 'OK, this is my wheelhouse, and I know we're going to throw it, the defense knows we're going to throw it, and yet I can go ahead and make a play.'"
