After watching the Minnesota Vikings deliver a beating to rookie quarterback Caleb Williams on Monday Night Football, former Hall of Famer Troy Aikman had a desperate suggestion for the Chicago Bears: bench their No. 1 pick.
Williams and the Bears endured another embarrassing loss to the Vikings in Week 15, failing to score a single point until the third quarter and limping away from U.S. Bank Stadium with a 30-12 loss — their eighth consecutive loss dating back to October 27. The Vikings clobbered Williams in the game, sacking him twice and hitting him another six times — and that’s only counting the official hits recorded in the box score.
By the fourth quarter, Williams looked exhausted on the sideline between drives. He even slumped onto his side at one point in visible pain, producing a viral clip that has since made the rounds on social media. The clip also caught Aikman’s attention live during ESPN’s game broadcast, prompting him to speak his piece about Williams.
“I was 0-11 as a starter and he’s had a much better rookie season than I had,” Aikman said. “He was grimacing and in an enormous amount of pain. And as I watch him, you can tell that he’s a defeated guy. I mentioned that he hasn’t been through anything like this in his career, and what you worry about is a rookie quarterback losing confidence.”
Aikman then floated his controversial suggestion to the Bears, advocating for the team to bench Williams for the rest of the 2024 season to avoid destroying his confidence.
Caleb Williams Has Taken Most Sacks in Bears History
Aikman is right about one thing: Williams is taking a beating out there for Chicago.
Through 14 games, Williams has been sacked a franchise-record 58 times. That brutal tally also ranks him third in NFL history for most sacks taken by a rookie quarterback, putting him behind only former Houston Texans quarterback David Carr (76 in 2002) and Carolina Panthers starter Bryce Young (62 in 2023) — both No. 1 overall selections.
Considering the high volume of hits that Carr took contributed to the premature ending of his NFL career, the Bears should feel legitimately concerned about their quarterback and the beatings he has taken throughout his rookie year. Williams also still has three more games left to play before the end of the season, meaning it could get even worse.
While the Bears are unlikely to take Aikman’s advice on benching Williams, they should look at his sack-heavy rookie season as an urgent sign for what they need to accomplish during the 2025 offseason. The offensive line that general manager Ryan Poles has built for his quarterbacks over the past three offseasons is simply not good enough, and that needs to change if the franchise wants to make the most of Williams’ promising career.
Until then, though, the franchise will have to cross its fingers and hope Williams can make it to the end of the season with both his health and confidence still intact.
Benching Caleb Williams Could Hurt More Than Help
The Bears could at least consider the possibility of benching Williams for his own safety during the final three games of the 2024 season, but they must also weigh whether such a move would have an adverse effect and do more harm than good to their franchise.
Despite the 4-10 record and the high number of sacks, Williams has shown tremendous promise throughout his rookie season. He already holds the franchise’s rookie records for completions (288), passing yards (2,937) and passing touchdowns (17) with three more games left to play. He has also not thrown an interception since the sixth game of his career, extending his active streak to eight games without a pick against the Vikings.
Yes, the Bears would eliminate the risk of Williams sustaining a significant injury if they were to bench him in favor of second-year backup Tyson Bagent down the stretch, but such a decision could eat away at Williams’ confidence more than the sacks themselves.
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