This wasn\u2019t the warmest way to begin an interview, but nothing ever seems to rattle Bears quarterback Caleb Williams:
\nThere\u2019s a large segment of sports fans and media that wants to see him \u2014
\n\u201cFail,\u201d he interjected with a big smile, \u201cwhich is all good with me.\u201d
\nAnd so began a conversation that would\u2019ve been uncomfortable for anyone else, but didn\u2019t bother him: Why do so many people hate Caleb Williams?<\/p>\n
\u201cI do things differently \u2014 dress, play, all these different things, paint my nails or whatever,\u201d he told the Sun-Times. \u201cI do some things that don\u2019t harm anybody else, but that other people don\u2019t like and have strong opinions about.
\n\u201cI\u2019ve also been in some pretty cool positions in my life: starting quarterback for the Bears, I went No. 1, won the Heisman. So I\u2019d rather have people talking about me than not.\u201d
\nHe doesn\u2019t have to worry about that. Everyone\u2019s always talking about him.<\/p>\n
One season into his NFL career, after going first overall in the draft, he\u2019s one of the league\u2019s most polarizing players. There\u2019s resounding support locally, where Bears fans hope he\u2019s finally the answer. He\u2019s popular nationally, too, but mostly as a punching bag.
\nLegitimate critiques are fine. When analysts, coaches and opponents hammer him for holding on to the ball too long and missing easy completions because he\u2019s looking for big plays, that\u2019s totally fair. Williams wouldn\u2019t object to much of that.
\nSome of it, though, clearly comes from a different place.
\nESPN analyst Sam Acho, a former Bear, said Williams was sloppy and a bad leader because his socks weren\u2019t pulled all the way up in a preseason game. A social media account aptly named \u201cHater Report\u201d posted a video of him throwing an ugly near-interception in practice with the caption, \u201cCaleb Williams already in midseason form,\u201d ignoring that Williams rarely threw interceptions as a rookie. The examples are easy to find.<\/p>\n
Both sides got what they wanted last season as Williams completed 62.5% of his passes, averaged 208.3 yards per game and threw 20 touchdown passes and six interceptions for an 87.8 passer rating. It was one of the better statistical seasons in Bears history, but the team went 5-12 and he lagged behind No. 2 pick Jayden Daniels and others in the rookie class.
\nEveryone sees what they want to see. Williams needs to be more convincing on the field to quiet the debate.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s a people person, and he\u2019d rather not be so divisive. Nonetheless, he accepts that it\u2019s part of the deal for someone of his status and brushes off all the \u201cfalse things that are blown up.\u201d Plenty of online posts and TV segments have been locker room entertainment for him and his teammates.
\n\u201cWhen you\u2019re the No. 1 pick and you\u2019re yourself, you are going to get a lot of hate,\u201d wide receiver Rome Odunze said. \u201cHe gets a lot of hate… but he comes in, he works hard every single day and he\u2019s himself, so I appreciate him for that.
\n\u201cIf you don\u2019t think this guy is putting every single day into his craft and then to making this organization better, then I really have no conversation for you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Williams admitted, however, one part that gets to him. When people get so caught up in his stature, effervescence and eccentricities, they don\u2019t take him seriously.
\nIt fuels a misconception that he\u2019s more concerned with being famous than great, that he\u2019s not fully committed. Few insults could strike deeper than that for someone who used to get up at 4 a.m. to work out as a kid and sees his ambitious goals on the home screen of his phone every time he picks it up.
\n\u201cI\u2019ve been serious since I was 9,\u201d Williams said, sharpening his tone. \u201cPeople get distracted by some of those things and they think that the work was not put in over a consistent amount of time … That gets lost.\u201d
\nHe added that \u201chard work is everything,\u201d and while he said it earnestly, he\u2019s only beginning to understand what hard work in the NFL really is.<\/p>\n
Williams thought he was working hard as a rookie, albeit with insufficient guidance from Matt Eberflus and Shane Waldron. He never got the clarity or correction he \u201ccraved,\u201d and often there wasn\u2019t a direct link from what he did behind the scenes to what happened in games. There was too much gray and too little accountability from coaches who acted as though he was their boss.
\nEnter Ben Johnson. That\u2019s no longer an issue.
\nThere is neither gray nor leniency with him. Williams asked to be coached harder and he\u2019s getting his wish every day.
\n\u201cI\u2019m sure he doesn\u2019t like what comes out of my mouth sometimes,\u201d said Johnson, who called Williams extremely coachable, \u201cbut he knows to get where he wants to go as a player and for us as a team, it\u2019s going to be the best thing for everybody.\u201d
\nWilliams confirmed that, calling Johnson \u201ca smart, smart, smart coach\u201d and saying he\u2019s had \u201ca lot more smiles\u201d than last season.<\/p>\n
The Bears\u2019 second attempt at putting proper infrastructure in place for Williams seems to be working better.
\nJohnson puts feedback over feelings, and that runs through the entire staff. He and offensive coordinator Declan Doyle haven\u2019t hesitated to call out Williams\u2019 errors publicly, let alone in meetings. Quarterbacks coach J.T. Barrett, who has worked under Johnson since 2022, is at the forefront of making sure Williams understands the entirely new way he\u2019s being coached after Johnson said there was little to no carryover from what Williams was taught by Eberflus and Waldron.
\nThe Bears also added 14-year veteran quarterback Case Keenum, who is with Williams literally every step of the way. That\u2019s much more instructive than what they tried last season with Ryan Griffin as an offensive assistant. Keenum has far more experience, and because he\u2019s on the active roster, Williams can learn simply by watching everything he does.
\n\u201cLast year, I didn\u2019t know what I didn\u2019t know,\u201d Williams said. \u201cThe \u2018working hard\u2019 was a little more blind, it was a little more uncertain [whether] I was doing something right. The uncertainty doesn\u2019t help with confidence that your hard work is actually paying off.
\n\u201cNow this year, having a vet, I\u2019m able to ask some questions, understand what worked for me last year, what didn\u2019t. The hard work adds a little more comfort and confidence.\u201d
\nThe results of all that work were uneven throughout training camp and will be tested when the Bears open the season Sept. 8 at home against the Vikings on \u201cMonday Night Football.\u201d
\nIt\u2019ll be yet another moment of hope and expectation at Soldier Field, and, of course, there will be millions hate-watching Williams on TV. Again, he\u2019d prefer it not be that way. But the only control he has over it is to raise his play to match the hype. Then the only thing people could hate is how talented he is, and that\u2019d be a good problem.<\/p>\n
Q: Why do people hate Caleb Williams?
\nA: People hate Caleb Williams for various reasons, including his unconventional behavior, playing style, and the fact that he was the No. 1 pick in the draft.
\nQ: What are some of the criticisms of Caleb Williams?
\nA: Some criticisms of Caleb Williams include holding on to the ball too long and missing easy completions because he\u2019s looking for big plays.
\nQ: How does Caleb Williams respond to criticism?
\nA: Caleb Williams brushes off criticism and focuses on his work, saying that he\u2019s been serious about football since he was 9 years old and that hard work is everything.
\nQ: Who is Caleb Williams’ new coach?
\nA: Caleb Williams’ new coach is Ben Johnson, who is known for being a smart and demanding coach.
\nQ: How has Caleb Williams’ new coaching staff helped him?
\nA: Caleb Williams’ new coaching staff has helped him by providing clear feedback and guidance, which has given him more confidence in his abilities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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