Bears QB Caleb Williams’ struggles continue in loss to Ravens

BALTIMORE — Caleb Williams saved his worst throw of the season for the worst time Sunday.

With about nine minutes to play and the Bears down three, the quarterback dropped back into his own end zone and threw a crossing route to receiver Rome Odunze, only for cornerback Nate Wiggins to undercut the route for an interception. Two plays later, the Ravens threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to give them a 10-point lead

It was just the second interception of the season for the Ravens — and the decisive blow in the Bears’ 30-16 loss at M&T Bank Stadium.

Somehow, Williams looked more out-of-sorts compared to his counterpart Tyler Huntley, who was the Ravens’ third-string quarterback until the team named him the starter Saturday. After the Ravens admitted they put out an incorrect injury report detailing the activity of Lamar Jackson in Friday’s practice, the Ravens announced that the two-time MVP would not play against the Bears.

A desperate Ravens team — sitting at 1-5 coming off their bye — would have to rally around Huntley instead. They did, the same way it happened in Soldier Field in 2021.

Huntley finished 17-for-22 for 186 yards, one touchdown pass and a 116.9 passer rating. He seven times for 53 yards, including an 11-yarder that set up Derrick Henry’s two-yard touchdown run to put the Ravens up 14 with 2:09 to play.

In the first half. Huntley went 11-for-12 for 110 yards.

Williams finished 25-for-38 for 285 yards, no touchdowns, one interception and a 77.2 passer rating. Williams missed a wide-open DJ Moore in the end zone on fourth down with 24 seconds to play, ending a drive in which he was hobbled by a quarterback hit and limped noticeably.

Williams never settled down all game. In the first half, he was flagged twice for intentional grounding, including on the last drive of the first half that pushed the Bears even farther out of field goal range.

On second-and-4 with 57 seconds left in the first half, Williams saw quickly that he had room to scramble and took off up the right sideline. Rather than run out of bounds, he went for extra yardage, gaining 22 yards before sliding to the ground at the Ravens’ 44. The Bears were forced to use their second timeout.

They had to use their third when, two plays later, Williams was flagged for intentional grounding when he fired the ball out of bounds along the left sideline while being pressured in the pocket. The Bears lost 10 yards and were forced to burn their final timeout to prevent a 10-second runoff. The Bears had to sprint the kick unit onto the field two plays later, and Cairo Santos left a 58-yard field goal short of the cross bar.

The Ravens turned their first possession of the second half into three points. The Bears didn’t parry until early in the fourth quarter, when D’Andre Smith smashed across the goal line on a third-and-goal run from the 3. His 25-yard catch-and-run on a third down screen pass four plays earlier put the ball at the 5.

The Bears narrowed the Ravens’ lead to seven by kicking a field goal with 5:06 to play, but the Ravens marched for a touchdown in less than three minutes.

Williams’ fourth-quarter interception was reminiscent of two years ago, when the Bears trailed by Buccaneers by three with about two minutes to play in Tampa. Justin Fields dropped into his own end zone, threw a a screen pass and had it intercepted by Shaq Barrett, who returned the pick for a touchdown.

The Bears’ most recent bugaboos continued Sunday. In a two-minute span in the middle of the second quarter, they took an intentional grounding penalty when Williams threw the ball away, setting up fourth-and-23. They then lined up illegally on the ensuing punt, which was downed at the Ravens’ 1. The Bears had to kick it again and booted the ball out of bounds at the Ravens’ 22. The Ravens took over, and the Bears eventually committed pass interference on an incomplete pass on third down, keeping the Ravens’ drive alive. The Ravens’ Tyler Loop finished the drive with a 42-yard field goal.

Henry’s first of two two-yard touchdown runs — this one in the second quarter — was the 111^th of his career, breaking a tie with Bears legend Walter Payton and moving into sole possession of fifth place in NFL history.