Latest Rumors on Bears' Caleb Williams amid Accountability Concerns Around NFL

Expectations will be high for the Chicago Bears following the hiring of new head coach Ben Johnson, which means quarterback Caleb Williams will be under even more of a spotlight heading into his second season.

With that as the backdrop, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler appeared on Sunday's SportsCenter and provided a report regarding the signal-caller's overall maturity and how important it will be as the Bears look to take the next step as potential NFC contenders.

"Football maturity is going to be a big thing for him," Fowler said. "Leaguewide, talking to other teams who are watching it closely because the ability is massive but how does he comport himself on the field? The Bears have already been working with him on body language, how you're handling yourself in the huddle, on the sidelines when a play doesn't go right. And the word out of Chicago is he's handling himself well there. 

"Now, some of the previous Bears coaches were not overly thrilled, I was told, that he made public that he was watching film by himself. They felt like he could've handled that a little better from an accountability standpoint. So those are all things people are watching but word is this offseason he's been great, really taken to Ben Johnson's hard, aggressive coaching."

In May, ESPN shared details from Seth Wickersham's upcoming book American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback that revealed Williams told his father, Carl, he watched film by himself at times during his rookie campaign.

"No one tells me what to watch," he told his father. "I just turn it on."

The book also included comments from Carl Williams suggesting the quarterback did not want to end up on the Bears ahead of the 2024 NFL draft. However, Caleb Williams has since told reporters he was all in on Chicago after he took his first visit.

The Bears have also fired offensive coordinator Shane Waldron and head coach Matt Eberflus, who were in place at the start of Williams' first season. What's more, they bolstered the offensive line with the additions of Joe Thuney, Drew Dalman and Jonah Jackson, which addressed a significant concern from the quarterback's first year in the league.

With DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet, D'Andre Swift and an improved offensive line working with a new offensive-minded head coach, anything but an explosive offense in the Windy City would be a disappointment. 

That will require Williams being at his best, and Fowler's report suggests he is embracing Johnson's coaching and the newfound spotlight.

Which could mean the playoff spot the Bears have been searching for since the 2020 campaign.