The Chicago Bears are 7-2, riding a four-game winning streak and sitting in the NFC’s top wild-card spot. So why does it feel like the biggest story out of Sunday night is a problem?
Because Caleb Williams threw four interceptions in a 27-24 win over Tampa Bay, the first four-interception game of his football career, college included. Before Sunday, he had never thrown more than two in a regular-season NFL game. And yet he also made the throw that won it, a 38-yard strike to Colston Loveland that set up Cairo Santos’ walk-off field goal.
So how worried should Chicago be? Here’s a closer look at what went wrong, what went right, and what it means heading into the bye.
How the interceptions happened
Not all four picks were the same, and the details matter.
No. 1, second quarter. The Bears were inside the Tampa Bay 10 when rookie receiver Zavion Thomas drew an unnecessary roughness penalty that pushed them back. On the next play, Williams threw his first interception. A sure scoring chance was gone.
No. 2, second quarter. Right after the Bucs were stuffed on a fourth-and-1 quarterback sneak, Williams threw off his back foot while taking a hit, and cornerback Zyon McCollum picked it off. That was two interceptions on two passes.
No. 3, end of the first half. One play after Cam Lewis intercepted Baker Mayfield with 43 seconds left, Williams threw what looked like a throwaway attempt that was picked off. Tampa Bay turned it into a field goal.
No. 4, third quarter. This one wasn’t really his fault. A pass intended for Luther Burden III was deflected straight up and into the arms of linebacker Alex Anzalone.
NBC Sports’ fantasy analysts called three of the four egregious throws, while giving Tampa Bay credit for the pressure that created them.
The good was very good
It’s easy to forget how the night started. Williams was sharp on the first two drives, throwing a touchdown to Rome Odunze and then a short pass that Burden turned into a 56-yard score. Chicago led 14-0, and the offense looked unstoppable.
And when the game was on the line, Williams delivered. After Tampa Bay tied it at 24 with 2:51 left, he led an eight-play, 49-yard drive that ended with Santos’ 38-yard kick as time expired. The key play was the 38-yard completion to Loveland, who was left open by a blown coverage and got out of bounds at the Tampa Bay 16 with 40 seconds to go.
He finished 22-of-37 for 279 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions. Our full Bears vs Buccaneers recap has every turn of the night.
What Williams said
Williams didn’t make excuses. He called the night “frustrating,” according to A to Z Sports, and took responsibility for the mistakes, while making it clear he isn’t going to stop being aggressive.
That’s the balance the Bears have to manage. Williams’ willingness to push the ball downfield is part of what makes him dangerous. It’s also what got him in trouble Sunday.
Head coach Ben Johnson, meanwhile, was far more interested in watching the film than celebrating the result, according to Audacy’s 670 The Score, though he also understood what it means to win a game like that. BVM Sports reported that Johnson said he believes the team’s best football is still ahead.
Context: this wasn’t the norm
One bad night shouldn’t erase the month before it. In the three games before Sunday, against Atlanta, New England and Seattle, Williams threw for 860 yards, completed 73.8% of his passes and had four touchdowns with no interceptions, according to Shaw Local.
| Caleb Williams | Previous 3 games | vs. Buccaneers |
|---|---|---|
| Passing yards | 860 | 279 |
| Completion rate | 73.8% | 59.5% |
| Touchdowns | 4 | 2 |
| Interceptions | 0 | 4 |
The Tampa Bay defense also deserves credit. According to NBC Sports, it was the Bucs’ second straight game with four interceptions. Whatever the Bears struggled with Sunday, they weren’t the first team to have trouble against that group.
The bigger concern: the second half
If there’s something to worry about, it might be the offense as a whole after halftime, not just the quarterback.
Before the final drive, Chicago’s offense managed one first down, four punts and two turnovers in the second half, according to 670 The Score. The Bears also lost a fumble by Burden late in the fourth quarter that set up Tampa Bay’s tying touchdown. Put together, Chicago let an 11-point fourth-quarter lead slip away, and the game was tied with less than three minutes to play. A team that wants the NFC’s top seed can’t make a habit of that, no matter who is at quarterback.
That’s where the Bears’ defense made the difference. It held Tampa Bay to three points off Williams’ four interceptions, and cornerback Jaylon Johnson returned a Mayfield interception 67 yards for a touchdown. “We’re a team full of fighters,” Johnson said afterward.
Should the Bears be worried?
Not much, at least not yet.
Every young quarterback has nights like this. What matters is whether the mistakes become a pattern. Williams’ recent run suggests Sunday was an outlier, and his response on the final drive showed he can shake off a bad night within the same game.
The bigger lesson is about margin. Chicago won a game it probably should have lost. Teams that turn the ball over five times usually do lose, and the Bears won’t always have a defense that bails them out and a kicker who hits from 38 at the gun.
What’s next for Caleb Williams and the Bears
The timing helps. Chicago is on bye in Week 10, which gives Williams and Johnson a full week to study the film and reset before the second half of the season.
The NFC North race won’t give them much breathing room. The Bears are 7-2, and they move into first place in the division if Minnesota loses to Buffalo on Monday night. See where every contender stands in our NFC playoff picture.
Join the conversation