INDIANAPOLIS — The Bears whiffed tremendously in setting up a proper infrastructure for quarterback Caleb Williams in his rookie season, and now they’re hoping new coach Ben Johnson can get it squared away and get him on the right track.
General manager Ryan Poles tied himself and his tenure to Williams last year by drafting him first overall and trading away Justin Fields, but now the responsibility for developing him belongs predominantly to Johnson. When Poles was asked Tuesday at the NFL Scouting Combine about his role in helping Johnson and Williams get on the same page, he deferred.
“We’ve had good conversations about this past year, but at the end of the day, that’s going to be Ben’s expertise,” Poles said. “So let him do his thing and build the relationship, build trust and coach him up.”
That’s a sensible approach considering Williams was one of the biggest reasons Johnson wanted the job. There’s little doubt his interviews focused heavily on a plan for Williams.
Johnson said last month that rather than simply transfer the playbook he used as Lions offensive coordinator the last three seasons, he would start from scratch and build new offense intended to maximize Williams’ strengths. With that, he’ll also push Williams to improve on certain concepts that have proven to work.
With him in place, the Bears have an opportunity for a long-term coach-quarterback partnership that has mostly eluded them the last few decades.
When they drafted Williams, former coach Matt Eberflus took the lead on his development — a role for which he clearly wasn’t suited. Eberflus and Poles interviewed several quality candidates for offensive coordinator, but chose Shane Waldron and had to fire him halfway through the season.
