As Bears quarterback Caleb Williams endured a choppy rookie season, he seemed mystified at times about issues with his throwing accuracy. He vaulted to the top of the draft in large part because of pinpoint precision, then completed fewer than half his passes in his debut and finished at 62.5% for the season — 33rd in the NFL.
That’s simply unacceptable for new coach Ben Johnson.
When Johnson opened training camp last month, he set a goal of Williams completing 70% of his passes this season. That target extended to the practice field, too. It would be irrational to think Williams would magically do it in games if he was struggling at Halas Hall.
It mostly has been a frustrating camp because Williams hasn’t been at that level.
“We’ve been underneath that bar,” Johnson said before practice Friday. “That happens. We’re learning. We’re growing.
“Early on, we were probably 55%. It’s gotten better as camp has gone on, but we haven’t hit that [70%] threshold as often as we would like.”
Johnson’s transparency and directness already are big changes from former coach Matt Eberflus and offensive coordinator Shane Waldron. He has left no ambiguity when giving updates on Williams’ progress.
The 70% mark Johnson set was ambitious but not impossible. Five quarterbacks did it last season, including the Lions’ Jared Goff with Johnson as his offensive coordinator. No. 2 pick Jayden Daniels was there until the last three games and finished just short at 69%.
Goff completed 68.1% of his passes in three seasons with Johnson as his coordinator, compared to 64.1% before that. Those four points might not seem like a lot, but last season that was the difference between eighth in the league and 22nd.
As Johnson continues working with Williams, he has two coaching points when it comes to accuracy: He must be sound in his footwork and do a better job leading receivers on routes that run right to left.
Johnson has changed Williams’ footwork on his drop-backs, but that’s not what he meant in this case. What he’s stressing to Williams is more about his fundamentals, and that’s an ongoing learning process after he was talented enough to get away with almost anything as a star at USC.
He dazzled with off-platform passes and unorthodox arm angles in college, but NFL defensive backs are too fast and too smart. Any pass that’s a little slow or inaccurate is a liability.
“It always starts with the feet for a quarterback, and if you’re not aligned properly from the ground up, then you’re going to have inconsistencies with your target,” Johnson said. “That’s what we’ve been talking about.”
In the other issue, he’s teaching Williams to avoid a common pitfall for right-handed quarterbacks going across their body: mistiming the pass and throwing behind the receiver. He has been working with Williams since spring to improve at anticipating the receiver’s path and throwing to him in stride.
On the flip side, he’s confident Williams will grow in those areas and emphasized that ‘‘it takes a long time to develop habits.” He also sees a lot to like in his overall form.
“He’s got a beautiful throwing motion,” Johnson said. “That was ingrained into him at a young age and still shows up. There’s nothing mechanically wrong. It’s all about the alignment and getting out in front of the target.”
What he seems to be saying is that while there’s significant work to do, there’s enough good there with which to work. The inherent talent is a good starting point; it just needs some refinement.