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'Bears offense & weapons will take off with Caleb Williams back at QB' | Toyota Talks
On this week’s Toyota Talks, Devan Kaney is joined by 104.3 The Score’s Chris Emma from Halas Hall. Caleb Williams was a full participant in Thursday’s practice; is QB1 set to make his return on Sunday in Atlanta and is he ready to lead this offense? Also, can Williams help get Colston Loveland and the other weapons more involved? Plus, what is the latest on Kyler Gordon and his potential return to the Bears defense?
Will Caleb Williams quarterback the Chicago Bears on Sunday? That remains questionable.
Williams got his game designation for Sunday vs. Atlanta, and it remains to be seen if he'll return. The Bears might get other players back, though.
What we know:
The Bears know they'll be made aware if Caleb Williams will play as soon as Friday evening, Johnson said.
"I'm hopeful we'll have more clarity at the end of the day today," Johnson said. "He looked good yesterday for one practice, but, we've got to be able to stack a few back-to-back. He got some good work in on Wednesday, even though we walked-through, he went through his own throwing session beforehand. So, it's part of the plan and he's on track right now."
Williams said yesterday he has to clear a few more hurdles before he plays, like a stress test on his hamstring.
On the Bears' Friday injury report, Williams was listed as questionable for Sunday's game. If he can't go, the Bears will turn to one of Tyson Bagent or Case Keenum.
"We've got two guys that are equally qualified," Johnson said.
What we don't know:
The Bears will be down a few players. Johnson said earlier this week TJ Edwards and Dayo Odeyingbo will likely miss time with their respective injuries. They've been ruled out for Sunday's game.
It's not clear if the Bears will get one player back or multiple.
Johnson did leave the door open for three players who might be active on Sunday: running back Kyle Monangai, defensive back Kyler Gordon and offensive lineman Ozzy Trapilo.
Gordon has been a full participant in Bears practices all week and last week. He's been trending towards playing, but needs to be activated off the physically unable to perform list before his 21-day practice window ends.
After an offseason of discussion around Gordon where Johnson showed frustration with the defensive back, Johnson's words were a little different on Friday.
"He's done a great job taking everything that we've assigned him so far," Johnson said. "I feel good about him, whether that's this week or next week. I do feel good about him being able to contribute to this team and help us out. There's a number of ways that he can do that, but I'm encouraged with what I've seen so far."
Monangai is another player who could have returned, but he's been ruled out as he didn't practice all week.
Johnson said he's been encouraged by where Monangai's status is, but noted the running back is still far from ready to go for this Sunday after he didn't practice all leading up to the Packers' game, too.
"It wasn't one of those things we felt like we needed to put him on IR for," Johnson said. "It is still week-to-week and, as far as I know, he's trending in the right direction."
Offensive tackle Ozzy Trapilo will be closer to making his season debut, however.
"We think he's really close," Johnson said. "There's a chance that he's up this week."
The designation for these players will most likely be made on Saturday afternoon when the NFL's transactions report comes out.
The Source: Reporting is from FOX Chicago's Chris Kwiecinski, who covers the Bears regularly at Halas Hall.