Nothing epitomizes futility quite like the Chicago Bears receiving the No. 1 pick in a goldmine NFL Draft, via a total heist job of a trade with the Carolina Panthers, only to lose 10 straight games to finish 5-12 the very next season.
Caleb Williams was supposed to be the quarterback to drag Chicago out of this vicious cycle of mediocrity. Now, rubber meets the road for the USC product, who underwhelmed relative to his rookie peers in 2024. Bo Nix and Jayden Daniels were in the playoffs. Drake Maye was in the Pro Bowl. Williams put up solid numbers, but took an NFL-worst 68 sacks as the Bears floundered in the NFL basement.
Nothing highlights the urgency of Chicago's situation more than Brock Purdy's new $265 million extension with the San Francisco 49ers. He is now the seventh-highest paid player in the NFL, which sounds absurd. But that's the market for solid, run-of-the-mill quarterbacks in 2025, and it's why Chicago is on an expedited timeline, despite Williams' youth.
Brock Purdy's massive contract puts pressure on Caleb Williams, Bears to deliver
Chicago has a complicated history at the quarterback position. It has been well over two decades since the Bears drafted and extended a starting quarterback. There have been brief reprieves from the constant turmoil at the position — Jay Cutler, he was fine! But, Chicago hasn't known a true franchise gunslinger in a generation.
The hope is that Williams can eventually achieve that status, but Chicago's recent foray into first-round picks at the position does not inspire confidence. Mitch Trubisky was a bust. Justin Fields was traded for a sixth-round pick. Williams ought to outperform and outlive both of them, but even if he does, what happens next?
If Williams realizes even a modicum of his potential, he will be in line for $50 million-plus annually in three years. The Bears have Williams on his rookie deal, a bargain-bin deal by modern NFL standards, for a few more years. Then it gets complicated, and if Chicago does finally have an extension-worthy QB on its hands, that will only increase the difficulty of building out the roster around him.
That's why there is pressure to win right now, while Williams is still affordable. That pressure extends beyond Williams and the front office, too. It touches new head coach Ben Johnson, who feels — on the surface — like the right guy to lead Chicago out of the dark ages and into the light. He's a wiz-kid offensive coordinator with a lot of new ideas. He built the NFL's most dominant offensive unit in Detroit. The Bears are quite familiar with his play-calling chops as a division rival.
But, how often has Chicago hired the "right" candidate, only for it to blow up in their faces? Some of these organizations are just cursed. Top to bottom, there are grave concerns about how things are ran in the Windy City. There is a significant burden of proof on the entire Bears organization to get things to a better place with Williams.
If Chicago cannot turn this around quickly, yikes. If the Bears finally break through with Johnson, then the clock is ticking on Williams. He's a financial poison pill. None of the quarterbacks paid more than Purdy have won a Super Bowl. This will get complicated either way. It's best if Chicago can find its highest gear as soon as possible.