Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

‘Judge Him Now That He’s Got Ben Johnson’ – NFL Analyst Backs Caleb Williams despite Uncertainty in Chicago

Caleb Williams showing significant improvement under Ben Johnson in Chicago

Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

For the Chicago Bears’ fans, it may seem like the hopes of yet another season are getting dashed. The Bears started this season 0-2, but since then, they are currently on a three-game win streak with wins over the Cowboys, Raiders, and the Commanders.

But while many fans and experts are still not convinced about Caleb Williams and the Bears, NFL analyst Stephen A. Smith expressed why he believes that Chicago is right within striking distance.

Stephen A. Smith Talks about the Changes Caleb Williams Has Had to Deal With

The weight of expectations on the young shoulders of Caleb Williams, even before he took a snap in the NFL, was beyond imaginable. Hyped by the media as the next-best quarterback, Williams was the consensus number one overall pick of the 2024 NFL draft.

However, after his rookie season and the shaky start to this season, fans and experts alike are not too convinced of his ability to play at this level. That being said, co-host of ESPN’s show ‘First Take’, Stephen A. Smith has backed the young signal caller to rise to the expectations.

Smith pointed out that Williams, who is just 6 games into his second year at the professional level, has already had to deal with three different head coaches and four offensive coordinators. That means he has never had the opportunity to settle into a system and has constantly had to modify his gameplay as per the different coaching techniques.

“Game 18 of his professional career, on his third head coach and his fourth offensive coordinator, who’s had to deal with that,” Said Smith. “Tell me a quarterback in NFL history that’s had to deal with three different head coaches and four different offensive coordinators inside of 18 games.”

What a difference a year can make. 😅🔥 pic.twitter.com/AUvCDRISLy
— Chicago Bears Network (@bearsnetwork_) October 14, 2025

Why the Bears Can Remain Competitive in the NFC North

Continuing to evaluate Williams’ play this season, Smith also questioned the people who are doubting the Bears’ ability to remain competitive in the tough NFC North division.

He pointed out the fact that the Packers gave away 40 points to the Cowboys, the Lions just lost to the Chiefs, and there are still plenty of questions around J.J. McCarthy and the Vikings.

At the same time, Williams has looked quite good this season, completing 64% of his passes, six touchdowns, just one interception, with a passer rating of 103.6 when trailing or tied this season. As things stand, the Bears may be in last place in their division, but the Vikings are also 3-2, while the Lions and Packers are 4-2 and 3-1-1, respectively.

Role of Ben Johnson

In light of the recent comments on Monday Night Football (MNF) by Troy Aikman over Caleb Williams, where he seemed to take indirect shots at the quarterback, Stephen A. Smith once again had Williams’ back.

Caleb Williams on criticism from Troy Aikman:

“I could care less.” pic.twitter.com/M5l5p2DNQv
— Caleb Williams Fan Club (@CalebFC18) October 15, 2025

Although Smith clarified that Aikman was right in what he said, he feels the comments are a little premature, especially now that Williams is working under a capable head coach in Ben Johnson.

“You want to judge Caleb Williams, judge him now that he’s got Ben Johnson, because I’m here to tell you I believe in Ben Johnson. I think that man can coach. I really, really do. And by the way, we’re seeing, and I hate to bring this up, but it’s necessary. Look at the discrepancies between the two former Detroit Lions coordinators. Look at the offensive coordinator, Ben Johnson, in Detroit last year. Look at the defensive coordinator, that is Aaron Glenn, and look at them as head coaches right now.”

Looking ahead, the Bears now have a relatively easy 3-4 game stretch ahead of them against the Saints, Ravens, Bengals, and the Giants, before tougher games come up. Baltimore and Cincinnati are currently all over the place, but with Lamar Jackson expected to be back, the Ravens may still be difficult to beat. Nevertheless, if the Bears can find consistency under Ben Johnson, the NFC North is not lost for Chicago just yet.

Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Ben Johnson

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Devavrat Kulkarni

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I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!