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Should Caleb Williams have played in the Bears preseason opener? Consider both sides | Telander

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Published  August 12, 2025 10:51am CDT
Bears
FOX 32 Chicago
Bears didn't play starters for first preseason game - what that means for the season

Bears didn't play starters for first preseason game - what that means for the season

The Bears? preseason opener ended in a tie. Cassie Carlson breaks down what it means and what?s next for the team.

The Brief

    • Caleb Williams is Bears' head coach Ben Johnson's main project. Can he turn the No. 1 overall pick into the quarterback the Bears have never had?
    • So far, training camp has yielded mixed reviews. This gives way to the idea that Williams should play in the preseason to get a better grasp of the Bears' new offensive scheme.
    • Williams did not play in Sunday's preseason game vs. Miami, however.

That was a nice diversion on Sunday, that Bears-Dolphins pre-season game. A 24-24 tie. Fun.

But the person Chicago Bears fans are dying to see — quarterback Caleb Williams — walked the sideline in sunglasses and a cool "Engineered For Chicago Bears’’ t-shirt, like any visitor with a sideline pass could do.  The elephant in the room was pacing harmlessly near the stands while the tigers and fire-eaters and walking dogs did their thing in the ring.

Williams played not a snap. It would have taken him most of a quarter just to get dressed, taped, in full uniform — so this was a no-brainer. Miami’s No. 1 quarterback, veteran Tua Tagovailoa,  started the game and played the first series. Remember, this is a guy who has been tackled so hard in his career that he has already suffered multiple concussions, and some observers have argued he should quit the game before he receives more head damage. 

But there he was, starting the game. He completed five of six passes for 27 yards, with no touchdowns and a mediocre 85.4 passer rating before coming out. But there he was.

No coach wants to see a player injured in the pre-season, especially not his starting quarterback. But there‘s risk in this pro game, always. And there’s no substitute for live action. Still, new Bears coach Ben Johnson felt it was best not to mess with Williams in what was only a practice game. 

What Johnson did instead was have Williams run through a near-game-like set of plays, more than 70, before the Dolphins game on Sunday. Williams ran plays with three wide receivers, a tight end and a running back. And no defense. That was good enough for Johnson as he tries to make the first player taken in the 2024 draft more notable for passing yardage and wins rather than getting sacked. Williams was sacked so many times in his rookie season — 68 total — that if things don’t change dramatically, he’s just an injury report waiting to happen.

"There is no substitute for real live bullets, I get that,’’ Johnson said after the real game in which three Bears quarterbacks played, but not Williams. 

"But at the same time, when you can accumulate 70-plus reps in a day, that’s pretty good.’’

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 10: Caleb Williams #18 of the Chicago Bears looks on during warm ups prior to the game against the Miami Dolphins during the NFL Preseason 2025 game between Miami Dolphins and Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on August 10, 20

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We can understand this care being shown to Williams. If he were to get hurt — doing anything, even walking to the hot tub — the Bears world would halfway collapse. 

Yes, Tyson Bagent and Case Keenum are serviceable. Both quarterbacks played Sunday, and they ended up with a combined three TDs, one interception and a decent quarterback rating. But none of them were the highest choice in an entire draft. Williams, remember, was taken by the Bears before quarterbacks Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix, Drake Maye, Michael Penix Jr. and J.J. McCarthy. He wasn’t brought to Chicago from Southern Cal to be an okay Bears quarterback. He was brought in to be the guy.

And the jury is still out on that. What can anyone decide until we see Williams under fire, bad guys coming at him, craziness everywhere?

Don’t forget Daniels was terrific for the Commanders last season. Former Bears first-rounder Justin Fields, dumped by the Bears and Steelers and now the No. 1 quarterback for the Jets, looked pretty good against the Packers in his pre-season start Saturday. In his one series, he completed three of four passes for 42 yards and ran twice for 14 yards and a touchdown.  What if this twice-rejected guy turns out to be as good as Williams? Better?

Questions lurk until we see what the offensive tinkering and assembling by the reputedly brilliant Johnson has wrought with his bonus baby quarterback. The offensive line has been ratcheted upward, new pass catchers like Colston Loveland and Luther Burden III are out there.  But not the elephant in the room.

It will come. And, of course, if Williams were to get injured in a pre-season game, the second-guessing and finger-pointing would be off the charts. So, we’ll wait and take it on faith that his arm is strong, his accuracy is good, his pre-snap mechanics are solid, his ability to see that drooling, blitzing strongside linebacker in the gap is functional, and he’s ready to roll.

Quarterbacks are everything in the NFL. We’ll find out about the Bears quarterback someday soon. Just not now.

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The Source: This article was written by Rick Telander, a contributing sports columnist for FOX 32 Chicago.

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