Bears' Caleb Williams Is Week-to-Week and Set to Miss Time

The Chicago Bears are about to play without Caleb Williams for the first time.

Head coach Ben Johnson said on Sept. 21 that his 24-year-old quarterback is week-to-week with a right hamstring injury and will miss some time. Johnson gave no firm return date during his radio interview on ESPN 1000, according to The Guardian.

The injury ended a brutal afternoon at Soldier Field. Chicago lost 9-3 to the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 20 to fall to 1-1, per the Chicago Bears. Williams went down on a fourth-quarter scramble, trying to stretch for the end zone on wet turf. He needed a cart to leave the field and was later ruled out, ESPN reported.

Johnson called it a week-to-week thing. That language matters in football. It means the team is not placing a set number of weeks on recovery and will judge it by how Williams moves and practices.

There is at least some relief in Chicago. Initial reporting on Sept. 20 described the injury as a Grade 1 hamstring strain, the mildest grade of that muscle pull, and there was optimism as of Sept. 21 that it was not severe, according to the New York Post.

Williams had started 36 straight games since Chicago took him No. 1 overall in 2024. He opened this season completing 65.5% of his passes for 407 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.

Backup Tyson Bagent finished the Vikings game, going 5 of 9 for 54 yards in relief. Johnson said Sept. 21 he has confidence in Bagent if he has to start. Bagent has been around. All four of his career starts came as a rookie in 2023, and he has thrown for 971 yards with three touchdowns and six interceptions in 13 games over four seasons.

For fans, this means a real test of Johnson’s offense without its centerpiece. In Detroit, where Johnson called plays from 2022 to 2024, Jared Goff started all 51 games. Chicago has not had to answer the backup-quarterback question until now.

The first answer could come quickly. The Bears are scheduled to visit the Eagles next Monday. If Williams cannot go, Bagent would be in line for his first start since his rookie year.