Caleb Williams, Ben Johnson Enter Bears Camp With ‘Lofty’ Goals. Can They Reach Them?

Chicago – Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams are entering their first training camp together with the Chicago Bears on the same page. 

The head coach and quarterback duo are setting some very big and very clear goals for themselves, whether that be an emphasis on game management and situational football for Johnson or some more “loftier” goals for Williams. 

“It’s not a secret,” Johnson said. “I told [Williams] I would love for him this season to complete 70% of his balls. 

“It’s a lofty goal, but it’s one we’re going to strive for,” Johnson added. “Because of that, we’re going to use that as a benchmark and kind of work from there.”

For reference, Williams’ completion rate last season was 62.5%. There were a total of only five quarterbacks league-wide who had a completion rate of over 70% with at least 300 dropbacks. Johnson’s former quarterback, Jared Goff, was one of them.

Both Johnson and Williams have been in communication all summer, whether it was one of Williams’ check-in texts or longer conversations about football, family or even things like cars. When they’re both in the building, Williams will pop up to Johnson’s office just to talk sometimes.

Pads have not come on, nor has practice begun to prepare for the season, but it’s becoming increasingly clear that there is a strong relationship budding between the first-time head coach and his new quarterback.

There is the football aspect of everything, too, of course. That’s what they’re both there for, after all. And the work didn’t stop for the summer, despite the pair going their separate ways for a bit.

Johnson gave Williams “homework” this summer. There were things that were emphasized in the spring that continued — things like Williams’ footwork under center, his pre-snap procedure and being more decisive.

Caleb Williams is looking to bounceback after struggling as a rookie in 2024. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Williams took to listening back to voice notes of play calls to continue to get comfortable. He would even practice his cadence while driving.

But there were more specific assignments, too.

“Part of the homework is — some of it was footwork,” Williams told me. “Some of it was not necessarily homework, but help guidelining the offseason. You know, get through the playbook 30 minutes, 40 minutes, an hour each day. Twenty-four hours, every day. If you can’t give up an hour or 30 minutes to go over your playbook, you probably shouldn’t be in this position. It was just small things like that. Homework-wise, it was mainly the footwork and then some left, short throws that in OTAs, I was missing. So worked on that every single day that I threw and went through my footwork every day that I was out there as well.”

Johnson and Williams’ relationship is the driving force behind that kind of preparation, which should aid in Williams’ development over the next six weeks.

That’s when the bullets are live and when Williams can get to work on his own goals — some of which are historic.

“Obviously, I have self-goals,” Williams said. “That’s being the first 4,000-yard passer in Bears history. That’s a goal of mine. Seventy percent completion, that helps the team, keeps [us] on the field, puts us in better positions. And then, other than that, just trying to go down and score the most points that we can with each drive that we have. That’s kind of my self-goal and obviously, other than that, you’ve got to go win. That’s success for me, that’s success for the team. That’s all we wish for and I wish for.”

Individual success by the quarterback means overall success for the team, but helping in that success is Johnson himself, who has to develop as a coach as he tries to make the transition from coordinator. It’s not an easy transition to make — you’re inundated with decisions that affect the whole team both on the field and off. You’re the guy who has to give the green light to go for it on fourth down. You’re the guy who has to call the timeouts. The transition isn’t going to be without its challenges or bumps in the road. But Johnson has thought that through, too.

“I think the one thing I have been thinking about a lot is leaning on the people around me,” Johnson said. “So, I’ve got a very experienced coaching staff by design, from Dennis Allen to Richard Smith to Richard Hightower. We’ve got a number of guys that have done this at a high level for a long time, and so I am going to be going to them for advice quite a bit when certain things arise.”

Entering his first year as head coach, Ben Johnson has prepared for the upcoming challenges in a variety of ways. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

Johnson has stressed building trust this offseason, even likening it to a documentary on Netflix called “Thunderbirds” that he watched this summer. Johnson saw a lot of parallels between the stunt pilots being put together and expected to put their lives in each other’s hands. While the stakes may not be as high as F-16 military pilots, Johnson, his coaches and the players will all have to come together to see success going forward — their livelihoods depend on it.

The biggest question mark the Bears face right now is if Williams is the future. He isn’t the first highly touted quarterback to come to Chicago with the weight of the franchise on his shoulders. This isn’t the first offseason where, on paper, the Bears got better. It’s not the first time Chicago fans have gotten their hopes up.

But is it different this time?

The goals both Johnson and Williams have set for themselves would suggest that it is. As Williams alluded to, the Bears have never had a 4,000-yard passer in the team’s century-plus-long history. Chicago has not been synonymous with good quarterback play or potent offense, for that matter.

If Williams completes 70% of his passes and throws for over 4,000 yards while Johnson learns to manage the game and the Bears excel at situational football, it really might just be different this time around.

 Carmen Vitali is an NFL Reporter for FOX Sports. Carmen had previous stops with The Draft Network and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. She spent six seasons with the Bucs, including 2020, which added the title of Super Bowl Champion (and boat-parade participant) to her résumé. You can follow Carmen on Twitter at @CarmieV. 

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