The Chicago Bears are currently in shock following their recent 38-42 defeat against the San Francisco 49ers. While their quarterback, Caleb Williams, fell short of the expected numbers in the recent clash, their offensive coordinator held patience, making it clear that the coaching team is still satisfied with the results. He also admitted that the head coach, Ben Johnson, was hard on the QB, but the strategy yielded a positive outcome in the end.

“Caleb Williams did a great job of managing the environment, even though they fell short. Also notes Williams’ improvement w/ cadence,” Bears reporter Josh Buckhalter wrote on X. “Says that Ben/the staff was not just tough on Caleb, but everyone. Says that challenge fueled players’ rising.”

Bears head coach Ben Johnson publicly acknowledged quarterback Caleb Williams’ opportunity to become the first Bears QB ever with a 4,000-yard passing season (a milestone no player in franchise history has reached). As of Week 18, Williams is approximately 270 yards short of the 4,000-yard mark. He also needs just 109 yards to break the Bears’ single-season passing record of 3,838 yards set by Erik Kramer in 1995.

Johnson’s message to Williams was direct as he said that while reaching 4,000 yards “would be great,” it is not the team’s primary goal. He highlighted that the Bears’ No. 1 objective is to win the Week 18 game and secure a better playoff seed, and that the passing-yard milestone is “tertiary” to team success.

Johnson sees it as an arbitrary stat and said it is more interesting to people who focus on numbers. Johnson pointed out that some NFL teams have never had a 5,000-yard passer, making it clear that big passing totals do not define success. He said he cares more about turnovers, third-down success, red-zone efficiency, and winning games than total passing yards.

Here’s what Caleb Williams thinks of the massive 4000-yard milestone

While the Chicago Bears’ head coach might not be interested in Caleb Williams’ achievement, the QB has a completely different approach. Standing just 109 yards behind Erik Kramer’s team record in 1995, the 24-year-old is now looking forward to reaching the mark in their upcoming clash against the Detroit Lions. On being asked about his feelings for the same, Williams simply agreed to the fact that it would be “cool”.

“It’d be cool just in the sense of there’s never been one here,” he told the Chicago Tribune. “I think I was brought here for those types of things and those types of moments, the things that haven’t been done here, to try and be able to accomplish.”

The Bears finished the 2025 regular season 11–5 and won the NFC North division. They cannot reach the NFC’s No. 1 seed after losing to the 49ers and are eliminated from first-seed contention. Chicago currently holds the No. 2 seed and can keep that spot with a Week 18 win or certain other results involving the Eagles. If they lose and the Eagles win, the Bears could drop to the No. 3 seed.

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