Bears quarterback Caleb Williams capped his rookie season in dramatic fashion Sunday in Green Bay, orchestrating the first game-winning drive of his career.
Trailing 22-21 with less than a minute to play, Williams completed passes of 15 yards to Rome Odunze and 12 yards to DJ Moore, setting up Cairo Santos' 51-yard field goal as time expired, giving the Bears a stunning 24-22 victory.
"Being able to end with a win in Green Bay, I couldn't ask for a better way," Williams said Monday at Halas Hall. "We've been through a good amount this year and to be able to go out there and fight and go out with a win and do it the right way was really cool to see, really cool to be a part of, and important to me."
Selected by the Bears with the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, Williams set franchise rookie records with 351 completions, 3,541 yards and 20 touchdowns. He became the first Bears quarterback to start every game in a season since Jay Cutler in 2009 and produced a streak of 353 straight pass attempts without an interception that is the fourth longest in NFL history.
Asked what he learned about being the face of the franchise, Williams said: "Playing quarterback in the NFL is fun as can be: The adrenaline, the time, effort and energy you put into it and to have a chance to be able to go out there and execute and win games with guys that you know are doing the same thing—working out, working hard, showing up—consistently throughout the year, and to have that collective goal and to be able to go out there and try to win the game.
"To have the opportunity to win the game is one of the best feelings that you can have. Being able to have those moments, being able to understand what it takes to be in this position, understand that it's a tough job, understand that there's a lot at stake being in this position of being a football player and trying to help turn things around. I think there's a lot of learning lessons. I think they were needed for myself but also for this team and [I] can't wait for what's next."
Williams became the only rookie in NFL history to pass for at least 3,500 yards with 20 touchdowns, six or fewer interceptions and rush for at least 400 yards. The only other quarterbacks to accomplish that feat are the Eagles' Jalen Hurts (2022), the Bills' Josh Allen (2024) and the Ravens' Lamar Jackson (2024).
"I mean I knew [playing quarterback in the NFL] was a big task at hand," Williams said. "I knew there were some things that I couldn't do from college, some of the things that I could do, a bunch of things that I needed to learn on and off the field.
"There were more lessons this year that I've had and one of the things was all of the different things throughout the week that [are] needed for me to be able to go out there and play well, for the team to play well. It's something that I learned early on and finding ways to be better at those things throughout the year and years to come."
