The Chicago Bears may be sitting atop the NFC standings after a wild Sunday that saw the Panthers upset the Rams, but don’t mistake their place in the playoff picture for perfection. Head coach Ben Johnson made that much clear on Monday. Yes, he celebrated the Bears’ gritty win over the defending champion Eagles with a shirtless locker room moment that went viral-but beneath the celebration is a coach who knows his team still has work to do, especially through the air.
“We’re winning in spite of our passing game, not because of it,” Johnson told reporters. “None of us are pleased with that right now.”
That’s a bold statement from a head coach leading the top team in the conference, but it’s also a fair one. The Bears’ passing attack has lagged behind the rest of their game, and Johnson didn’t sugarcoat it. He emphasized that improvement needs to come from every level-quarterback, receivers, and even the play design itself.
The focal point of that passing game, of course, is rookie quarterback Caleb Williams. The No. 1 overall pick is still finding his footing in the NFL, and while there have been flashes of the elite talent that made him a college superstar, the consistency just hasn’t been there yet. Williams has completed only 58.1% of his passes this season, which ranks 31st in the league-a far cry from the 70% mark he set for himself before the year began.
Johnson pointed to fundamentals as a key area of concern. “The primary receiver, when he’s open, we’ve got to make sure we hit him,” he said.
“And all of our pass catchers-we just harped on it today-we need to be more disciplined in our route detail. It’s not where it needs to be.
Our depth’s not proper all the time. Our steps [aren’t].”
That kind of detail-oriented critique is what you’d expect from a coach who has a clear vision for how his offense should function. Johnson’s system isn’t exactly plug-and-play-it’s complex, timing-based, and demands precision. And while Williams is still learning the ropes, Johnson has seen signs that the rookie is starting to take command.
“What you don’t see is how smooth that operation was on Friday,” Johnson said. “I thought that was one of the better jobs he’s done getting the play call, getting out of the huddle.”
That’s not nothing. For a young quarterback, mastering the mechanics of running an NFL offense-getting plays in, managing the huddle, reading the defense pre-snap-is often a bigger hurdle than fans realize. And Williams is showing growth in those areas, even if the box score doesn’t always reflect it.
One stat that does show progress? Sacks.
Williams was sacked a league-high 68 times last season. This year, through 12 games, that number is down to just 19.
That’s not just on the offensive line-that’s a quarterback learning to get rid of the ball, navigate the pocket, and avoid the kinds of hits that can derail a season.
Still, for the Bears to make real noise in the postseason, the passing game has to catch up to the rest of the team. Right now, the offense is being carried by a punishing ground game that’s averaging 153.8 rushing yards per contest-second-best in the league. That, paired with a defense that’s been opportunistic and timely, has been enough to beat teams like the Eagles, whose offense has struggled to find rhythm.
But as the calendar flips to December and the games start to mean more, Chicago can’t afford to be one-dimensional. The run game and defense have kept them in the driver’s seat, but if they want to stay there-and more importantly, make a deep playoff run-they’ll need Williams and the passing attack to take that next step.
Johnson knows it. Williams knows it. And with the Bears suddenly leading the NFC, the pressure is only going to ramp up from here.