Pro Football Focus: Caleb Williams is already a blitz killer

The plot has largely been lost when talking about Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams. To hear some analysts tell it, one would think Williams recorded one of the worst rookie seasons in NFL history. The truth of the matter is that Williams started all 17 games and threw for over 3,500 yards and 20 touchdowns while tossing just six interceptions. Any way you slice it, Williams had a good rookie season with the Bears, especially when you consider the Bears' coaching failures in 2024.

Additionally, there's more to his rookie success than meets the eye. Once you start digging into the particulars of his performance, you see promising indicators that Williams is only going to get better from here. One facet of his game that should have Bears fans particularly excited is how well Williams does against blitzing defenses.

In a recent article dissecting the highs and the lows of Williams' rookie season, Nick Ackridge, an NFL analyst for Pro Football Focus, revealed that Williams registered a 78.9 overall PFF grade against the blitz in 2024. According to Akridge, this grade "would have been the best for a rookie quarterback since 2016 if it wasn’t for Jayden Daniels' outstanding season. That still doesn't diminish Williams' performance against the blitz. He was very good and consistently made defenses pay when blitzing him, tallying 11 big-time throws, tied for the fourth most in the NFL."

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Making 11 big-time throws against the blitz would be impressive for any quarterback, but doubly so for a rookie. One of the easiest ways to beat your typical rookie quarterback in the NFL is to blitz him. Almost without fail it overloads a young player who is still finding his way at the professional level and forces him into mistakes. But Williams is not your typical rookie, and he proved that by routinely making defenses pay for sending extra pass rushers after him.

Williams will look to build on his strong debut as we enter the 2025 season. With a vastly improved offensive line and an offensive guru at head coach, we should finally see the former Heisman winner live up to his generational billing and help the Bears take a big leap forward.

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