Caleb Williams may not have the NFC North crown locked down on the field yet, but one analyst is already handing it to him on paper.
Sayre Bedinger of NFL Spin Zone named the Bears quarterback the best passer in the division, a call that leans on both what Williams did in his second NFL season and what he might still become in year three.
"We're starting this thing off with a bit of a controversial pick, and maybe even somewhat of a hot take. But Caleb Williams took a big enough leap in his 2nd NFL season to be considered the best quarterback in the NFC North, even if we're doing a little projecting."
That projection is doing a lot of work here, and Bedinger knows it. The NFC North has multiple quarterbacks in the mix, with Jared Goff and Jordan Love also in the conversation for the top spot.
The picture gets even murkier if Kyler Murray enters the mix, though Bedinger notes Murray would not be the fourth-best quarterback in most divisions. For now, though, the race is basically down to Williams, Goff, and Love.
Williams’ case starts with growth. He finished third among the three in passer rating, and his 58% completion rate lagged behind the more than 66% marks posted by the others.
But the big-play production helped close the gap. Williams threw for 3,942 yards, more than Love’s 3,381, though still behind Goff’s 4,564.
He also added a dimension the others didn’t. Williams ran for 388 yards and scored three rushing touchdowns, while Goff had 45 rushing yards and no scores. Once that ground production is folded in, Bedinger sees the gap between Williams and Goff shrinking fast.
The other piece is age and expectation. Williams is heading into his third season, and Bedinger is betting on another jump. Goff, by contrast, is going into his 11th year, which makes him a much more established version of himself at this point.
Team context matters too. Goff put up those numbers on a 9-8 team, where the defense forced him to carry more of the load. Williams, meanwhile, played for an 11-6 Bears team that did not need the same kind of volume from its quarterback.
So while the NFC North quarterback debate is still tight, Bedinger’s choice comes down to upside, production, and a little faith in what comes next. In his view, Williams is the one with the best case right now, and the 2026 season should finally sort out the order.
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