Caleb Williams didn’t back away from the criticism over his completion percentage - and that confidence quickly invited a counterpunch.
After the Chicago Bears quarterback said on “Pardon My Take” that he expects his completion rate to rise, Daniel Kelly of First Round Mock pushed back hard, arguing that the numbers and the film point in the opposite direction. Williams completed 58.1% of his passes in his breakout 2025 season, a mark that ranked 32nd among 33 eligible passers, but he still said improvement is coming.
“There's just one problem with Caleb Williams' lip service,” Williams said. “Trying to raise his completion percentage means attempting to get the ball out on time - And that will be in direct conflict with his college and NFL history of holding the ball too long and his deep-seated hero complex.
“Per Pro Football Focus - Williams' "time to throw" during his three years in college was 3.51 seconds (2021), 3.24 seconds (2022), and 3.16 seconds (2023). Williams' "time to throw" during his two years in the NFL was 3.03 seconds (2024) and 3.23 seconds (2025).”
Kelly’s skepticism came even with Williams helping lead the Bears to the NFC North title last season. But after pointing to that disconnect between the quarterback’s words and his style of play, Kelly said there’s not much historical evidence to suggest the completion percentage jump is coming.
“I don't mean any disrespect when I say 'lip service,' but there isn't any historical evidence to support his quote,” Williams said. “Increasing the completion percentage in the NFL means getting the ball out on time.
That's not him. That's not who he is.
That's not how he plays the game.”
Williams, though, sounded intent on answering the criticism himself. He acknowledged that some of the incompletions are tied to the way he plays within the Bears’ offense, but he still made clear he wants the number to climb in the coming season.
“Obviously I want to get that up, get the completion percentage up, but some of the things that I do on the field, it negatively impact that," Williams said. "But we'll get it up this year just to shut everybody up and help everybody to understand.”
He also pointed to the standard set by some of the game’s biggest names.
“I've looked up all the greatest guys, from Peyton (Manning) to Tom (Brady) to Patrick (Mahomes), all these different guys. On average, most of them are 65 to 63 completion, 62 completion, which is surprising.
At least to me, it was surprising, because it was only two percent off, three percent off. So, we'll get it up.”
For context, Peyton Manning finished his career at 65.3%, Tom Brady at 64.3%, and Patrick Mahomes is currently at 66.2%. Williams did make a noticeable leap in 2025 compared with his rookie season, and now the question is whether that progress continues next year.
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