ESPN's Caleb Williams bombshell gives Bears fans reason to regret Ryan Poles extension

This is supposed to be the season when it all changes for the Chicago Bears. After years of mediocrity, new head coach Ben Johnson comes in minted as one of the greatest offensive minds in modern football. He has a former No. 1 pick to mold into a franchise quarterback in Caleb Williams. All the pieces are in place.

Chicago made significant overhauls to the roster this offseason, boosting the offensive line and the run game, not to mention the defense. But it all comes down to Williams, who led the NFL in sacks as a rookie and struggled more than expected despite flashing his uniquely high ceiling on a regular basis.

Williams is learning a new scheme for the second straight season — and this one is far more complex than Shane Waldron's a year ago. As ESPN's Courtney Cronin outlines, Johnson is asking his quarterbacks to memorize long, varied play calls without a wristband. He wants Williams to be "more structured" with his play calls, while also being able to record-scratch at the line of scrimmage and think on the fly.

One practice clip in particular has been making the rounds in recent days.

Caleb Williams' steep learning curve has Bears fans panicking

Williams can be seen missing the target several times in a quick-deliver drill and storming off in extreme, vocal frustration. While some might commend the quarterback's competitive fire, it's a bit unnerving when your so-called franchise star a) can't hit the target and b) is not handling it in a traditionally level-headed, mature way.

For his part, Williams explained himself to reporters, noting that it's a competition between Bears quarterbacks and that there is a mandate to "do something funny" if you miss the net. So maybe it was all a comedy show, for which the fans scrolling Twitter lacked context.

Bears GM Ryan Poles doesn't sound too worried either.

"I actually think it's pretty cool," Poles told ESPN. "I knew there was a bad practice. I've seen clips on Twitter. I didn't know it was a national crisis of Caleb struggling."

Caleb Williams 'struggles' puts Ryan Poles on the Bears hot seat

About a month ago, the Bears extended Poles' contract through the 2029 season. He isn't going anywhere any time soon. That said, it's more than fair to question the logic behind the extension, as Poles has consistently failed to deliver a competitive roster. Even last season, when the Bears lucked into a potentially generational prospect with the No. 1 pick, Poles hung him out to dry with a shoddy head coach and a makeshift O-line. It's hard to develop winning habits as a quarterback when you're under constant duress, as Williams was last season.

There is a lot riding on the 2025 campaign now. Williams clearly still has a long way to go before he's comfortable in the Ben Johnson system. It's a system that worked wonders for Jared Goff and the high-octane Detroit Lions, but Williams is a different quarterback — and a much younger quarterback.

If the Bears' new-look roster does not deliver immediate results, Poles' seat will start to get warm. It's hard to imagine ownership axing its GM with four years left on his deal, but if another season goes awry and the Caleb Williams experiment starts to sour, I'm not sure what other options remain. You aren't canning Ben Johnson one year into his (very lucrative) contract. Poles' roster-building — and even the decision to select Williams at No. 1, for as much consensus as there was at the time — will be put under the microscope.

Chicago faces a lot of pressure as we ramp up for Week 1 of the preseason. Expect fans to have a totally normal reaction if Williams struggles in his preseason debut.