The Chicago Bears are working hard in training camp, and new head coach Ben Johnson is trying to get this team ready for their debut this season. There’s a lot of pressure on Johnson to get quarterback Caleb Williams into a better place than he was last year. Williams’ rookie wasn’t what the franchise had hoped, not that it’s his fault, but regardless, Johnson is there to set Williams up for success.
Before Johnson started working with Williams, he had some specific goals that he wanted to achieve with the signal-caller. Now that he’s had some time to work with Williams, both on and off the field, he’s discussing how far the two have come.
The Chicago Bears’ regular season kicks off September 8 against the Minnesota Vikings at home. Right now, it doesn’t sound as if the team, including Williams, is quite ready, based on some comments from Johnson. His comments could be seen as troublesome by some, but hopefully it’s just growing pains.
Chicago Bears Coach Ben Johnson Discusses Caleb Williams’ Numbers
When the Chicago Bears’ training camp started, Johnson had a goal for Williams to hit a completion percentage of 70%. So, how close is Williams to that goal? He’s not there yet.
This week, Johnson spoke with the press about the Bears’ development and how they’ve been progressing since the start of training camp. He said that Williams’ completion rate started at 55% and has gotten better but isn’t up to the 70% that he’s expecting.
“We’ve been underneath that bar. We’re learning. We’re growing,” he said in a conference. “Early on we were probably 55%. It’s gotten better as camp has gone on but we haven’t hit that threshold as often as we would like.”
A Better Update on Chicago Bears Quarterback Caleb Williams
So, Williams’ numbers aren’t there yet, but Johnson isn’t worried. He elaborated on the issues and said that he doesn’t believe it’s a mechanical issue with Williams.
“In my opinion, it always starts with the feet. It doesn’t matter what level you are at,” he said. “It always starts with the feet for the quarterback and if you’re not align properly from the ground up, then you’re going to have inconsistencies with targets. That’s what we’ve been talking about.”
He added, “Specifically, for all right-handed quarterbacks, when you throw it to a target moving from the right to the left, you typically throw it behind, so you have to train yourself and make sure you’re opened up enough to throw him to where he’s going to be and not where he’s at. That’s something we talk about going into the summer break and something we still harp on. You can’t get enough of that.”
Johnson also emphasized that this stuff doesn’t happen overnight. “It takes a long time to develop habits,” he said, adding, “that’s the starting point. I think he’s got a beautiful throwing motion. I mean, that was engrained into him at a very young age. So, it’s nothing mechanically wrong, but it’s just all about the alignment and getting out in front of the target.”
So, don’t get too discouraged by the early numbers. Williams is young and developing, and that’s a good sign, so hopefully he’ll be ready for the first regular season game at Soldier Field come September.
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