Caleb Williams Just Made My Thursday Night Pizza Taste Like a Playoff Game

Hi! Marina again, still minding the sports desk while Kevin is away. I'm a Gators person first, but Thursday night I sat on the lanai with a slice of deep-dish pizza (it felt right) and watched the Chicago Bears beat the New England Patriots 30-24 at Soldier Field. By the fourth quarter I was yelling "THROW IT TO BURDEN" at a TV in Florida like I had season tickets.

So let's say it plainly. Caleb Williams is very, very good.

The Thursday night numbers

• 22 of 33, 308 yards, 2 touchdowns, 0 interceptions, a 116.7 passer rating
• 5 carries for 18 yards, plus a lot of plays where he slipped out of a sack and threw on the run
• Eight completions of 20+ yards: Luther Burden III for 58, 22, 26 and 24; Colston Loveland for 22; Rome Odunze for 21, 21 and 21
• Bears move to 5-2, with four wins in their last five

Before the half he hit Burden for a 24-yard touchdown with 14 seconds left to make it 20-7. Burden had four catches for 130 yards in the first half alone, which is a full game's work for most receivers. Then, after New England scored on the last play of the half, Williams opened the third quarter by rolling left and finding Loveland for a 12-yard touchdown. Loveland broke a tackle and dragged three Patriots into the end zone with him. That was the drive that said "no, we're fine."

The quietly huge one: with the game still tight late, he hit Odunze for 21 yards on third-and-11 from Chicago's own 13. If that one falls incomplete, the Patriots get the ball back with room to work. Cairo Santos later kicked a career-long 58-yarder, Odunze recovered the onside kick with 37 seconds left, and that was that.

And this was his second big game in a row since coming back from a hamstring injury that cost him three games. Last Sunday in Atlanta he went 30 of 36 for 305 yards in a 31-23 win. Two weeks in a row of 300 yards, zero picks, and a man I've never met is now the main topic at my lanai table.

It was also his second meeting with Drake Maye, his 2024 draft classmate and friend. Maye won the first one 19-3 when they were rookies. Maye was excellent Thursday too (321 yards, two touchdowns), which made Williams' night look even better.

The clip that sums up the argument

Kay Adams and the Up & Adams crew put it better than I can. Their caption basically says the usual excuses for doubting him are out of the window after this one. It's a fun, sharp watch, and Kay's show is always a good time when a quarterback makes the critics go quiet.

Watch the throws yourself

The NFL put together all of his best plays from the night, and it's worth the few minutes. Watch the Burden catches. Watch how often he's moving when he lets go of it.

The Chicago Bears posted his full postgame press conference, where he called his team "smashmouth" and "innovative" and said that when "the water's rocky, we stay steady." I would like that stitched on a pillow.

And the Prime Video crew had Williams and Burden on together after the game. They are clearly having a blast, which is my favorite kind of sports interview.

So, is he incredible?

Yes. A quarterback who throws for 300 against a good defense on a short week, with no turnovers, and fixes things after his team gives up a gift touchdown is not "promising" anymore. He's arrived. I'm keeping the pizza tradition going until he loses, which, at this rate, could be a lot of pizza.

One downer: tight end Cole Kmet was carted off with a knee injury in the fourth quarter, and coach Ben Johnson said it didn't look good. Wishing him the best.

Stats are from the official NFL game book and the Bears' game recap and stats pages, checked Friday, Oct. 23.

Planning the weekend? Brooke has the tides and beach plans, and Sandy has the meetups.