Caleb Williams didn't play well on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints. He'd be the first to tell you as much. He finished with just 176 yards passing and an interception. It marked his first truly bad performance of the season. Thankfully, it didn't end up mattering as the Chicago Bears cruised to a 26-14 victory. Whie fans were elated about the four-game win streak, many couldn't get over the fact that Williams seemed to regress. People are starting to wonder if he's returning to bad habits. Olin Kreutz had some thoughts about that.
The six-time Pro Bowl center didn't argue that Williams had some rough moments in the game, but he also provided some context on 670 The Score. Much of what happened Sunday came from how the Saints deployed on defense. It was evident that defensive coordinator Brandon Staley geared his entire game plan around stopping the Bears' passing attack. They were in nickel almost all day and almost never loaded the box. It worked. Williams never really got into a rhythm.
However, that approach came at a cost. It enabled the Bears' ground game to rack up 222 yards.
Olin Kreutz understands context is crucial with Caleb Williams.
It would've been one thing if the young quarterback had opportunities everywhere and just kept missing them. Sure, there were such moments, but it's not like Caleb Williams was blind. He saw the chances. He just didn't hit them. Games like this happen from time to time, especially for young quarterbacks in a new offense. The fact that New Orleans built their entire game plan around stopping him was a sign of clear respect. Staley is a good defensive coordinator. Previous weeks saw the Saints focus on stopping the run and opposing QBs were more efficient. This time he tried flipping the script to see if that might work.
While the approach succeeded in frustrating Williams, it didn't matter. Ben Johnson took full advantage of the light boxes to gouge New Orleans on the ground. Lastly, one should remember Jared Goff wasn't a model of efficiency during his first year in this offense in 2022. His sixth game that season saw him throw two ugly interceptions and score only six points. He was a seven-year veteran at that point. Olin Kreutz is right. Keep things in perspective with Williams.
