Kurt Warner breaks down Caleb Williams’ struggles against Saints | Spiegel & Holmes

Kurt Warner breaks down Caleb Williams’ struggles against Saints | Spiegel & Holmes

been dying to talk to you about this game where Caleb struggled a little bit but the Bears won. What did you think as you watched some of Caleb in that game against the Saints? Um I mean I continue to see growth on my end. I mean it’s never going to be a perfect product. Um you know very seldom play a perfect game, but again I look at this offense as a whole and I see the offense coming together. I mean they’re starting to run the football. They’re starting to mix it up. Uh, I think Caleb is continuing to make um a lot of plays that are there in front of him. I’m, you know, I still fighting the battle that there’s times where, you know, I just wish he would kind of play the play in front of him and, you know, not go off script as much and start running around and doing all of his spins and just play the game. But you have to understand that’s going to be a process. And we we’ve continued to talk about fighting the battle of what he’s always done to what Ben wants him to do. Um, and I think there’s progress every week and the offense just continues in my opinion to evolve and become a pro offense that can do a lot of different things and and then they’re finding ways to win along along that process. And that to me is um what it’s all about, you know, this game to kind of go up and then down and then up again and uh and to make the plays that you have to make um you know, while you’re growing into that that process and and and learning how to do everything that Ben wants you to do and getting more comfortable with the offense. I mean, I don’t expect it to be a perfect product. And you know, there’s some issues that Caleb has to keep working on. Um some mental, some physical that lead to some of those issues. Um, but to me, I want to see progress every week and I want to see him be able to win and and look, um, you know, like an NFL offense and and I really feel like the last two weeks have been the best version of this uh, Ben Johnson, Caleb Williams uh, Bears offense. And it sounds like part of the point that you’re evaluating there as well is just everything that’s happening around Caleb finally getting a more consistent, productive run game going with him. And, you know, Caleb’s role in that. I was kind of addressing this a little bit on the radio after the game Sunday, Kurt, that that it shouldn’t be discounted as Caleb is learning this system that there’s responsibilities he has for getting the Bears into the proper run play or or canning plays to to trade which direction the play is going for a young quarterback. How much do you think Ben Johnson sort of allows on his plate right there for for how the Bears are running the football? I mean, I I think he’s, you know, I think he’s trying to give him as much as he can give him. And, you know, I think he’s pushing the envelope there and um and I was just tweeting somebody, you know, about it earlier is that, you know, we don’t really know what the ceiling is and what the upside is and and how much Caleb can handle and how much he can play, you know, in structure and and get through his processing and all. We don’t know that yet. But to me, now’s the time where you have to put all of that on his plate. And you’ve got to see what he can be and what he can handle. And um, you know, because I’m still a firm believer that those are the things you have to do to be great at this level. Don’t care how athletic you are. I don’t care how, you know, crazy talented you are with with your right arm and the throws that you can make. At the end of the day, the best quarterbacks in this league that compete at the highest level, you know, year in and year out are the guys that can do those things. They can handle those things. They can play in structure on a consistent basis and make the right throw and make the right read. Uh that’s how you continue to win in this business. Even though we’ve got the most athletic quarterbacks we’ve ever had in the history of our game, that is still how you win uh at the highest level and at the biggest moments in this business. And so to me, you’ve got to keep throwing this stuff at him and you got to figure out who he can be and know that it’s not going to happen right now and he’s going to have to learn because he he hasn’t been there before and hasn’t been forced to do that. But he’s got to do that. I mean, I think we’re kind of doing the same thing or seeing the same thing in Arizona with Kyler Murray is very talented and a gifted gifted thrower and a gifted gifted athlete, but we’re in year seven with Kyler and people still asking the same questions. Can he do this? You know, can he grow into this? And I think a lot of people are starting to think he can’t. He’s not going to be that guy um because he hasn’t shown it at this point. I I don’t know if he is or not, but those are the things you have to figure out and you have to determine if your guy is that guy because that’s the guy that can take you where you want to go. Um, and we don’t have those answers yet. So, uh, I think he’s putting a lot on his plate. I mean, he’s talked about it all through training camp, putting a lot on his plate. I’m throwing a lot of stuff at him. I’m seeing what he can handle because ultimately at the end of the day, he’s going to have to handle it all or at least a lot of it if they’re going to play at that high level. Kurt, um, you mentioned some physical, some mental. Did you see anything that made you think, “Oh, that’s mental.” Like, was there something you had in mind as you as you referenced that? When you say that in terms of Caleb’s play, just like what did as you were watching, you’re thinking, “Oh, that’s just that’s that that’s something he’s got to understand that he’s not understanding on a given play.” I mean, I I think the mental part of it for me more than anything is is allowing the offense to work for you. And so, this isn’t unique to Caleb. I actually just did a video on Drake May who went 21 for 23. Yep. The other day. And so, by all accounts, you know, it’s record-breaking. He does things that Tom Brady hasn’t done. And if you watch the video, you’re going to see there is seven, eight times in that game where there’s guys wide open right in front of him, you know, that he’s looking at or that are part of the read or that are coming into his vision and he takes off and runs. You know, he doesn’t throw it. He takes off and runs and blah blah blah and it fine. It’s a positive play and we’re still 21 for 23. But my point is simply, there’s a lot of young guys in this league that are relying more on the athletic and the reactionary plays and less on the mental understanding and allowing their offenses to take that pressure off of them. Um, you know, eliminate some hits, eliminate the physical part, the hard part of it, and allow the easy things to take over and work for you. And you know, I think that’s again what what I see when I watch him, you know, basically every Sunday, there’s a number of plays where I’m just like, just settle down. Settle in there. Number one’s not open. Number two’s coming. It’s coming. It’s going to come right in your vision. It’s right there. Just wait for it. You know, or something pops and and you see, you know, how quickly he moves to to react and throw it and you’re like, relax. Like, expect that to come. Like, expect that to be open. relax in your technique and and play the game where it just seems like some things are kind of surprising him mentally right now. Things that he’s not really at the point where he can expect that or understand, oh, I’m looking at this read, but if that’s not there, it’s because this guy’s taking it away and Ben’s giving me something that’s going to replace that and it’s going to be there. Just relax and play through it and play with the timing of the play and and allow it to work for you. So that’s that’s kind of the big thing that I see with a lot of these young quarterbacks. But the thing that shows up, you know, basically every week with Caleb that some have gotten better and he’s and he’s done a nice job with some of them, but you just want to see that become kind of the norm and the fabric of who he is within this offense and then the runs and the reactionary stuff become secondary. Um, so you don’t have to rely on that, uh, you know, every single timeout. And again, I look at Drake May and he ran a bunch and made a lot of plays, but he also got beat up in that game, you know, and he takes a big hit on things that he doesn’t have to because there’s things in front of him that are just going to be easier. And so those are the mental things that to me continue to kind of pop with a lot of young quarterbacks, including Caleb. the Caleb interception on third and 17. It looked like his eyes never went away from the target and and and and the corner jumped it. Uh is that is that something he’s that can improve and needs to improve? Yeah, I mean uh I’m trying to recall now the interception. I watched it before I took my long trip back from London and Yep. Uh am all jetlagged right now. Third and no worries. It was third and 17. A deep pattern on the left where a guy was schemed open. But anyway, he he stared down. It was a It was a comeback to Roma Dunay on third and 17 where he just he had his eyes out to the boundary side pretty pretty much the entire drop. Yep. Yep. Yep. Okay. Um Yeah. Um you know, here’s the thing is is these are kind of things that people talk about all the time. Like one thing I hear a lot of casuals say is he’s staring down his receiver. And you know, it’s an interesting concept because very seldom I will say in in this game are we really trying to work guys with our eyes. There’s certain concepts. You got double seam concept. You got to work the pre-safety. Use your eyes so you can work in one side of the other and throw uh the seam away from it. But a lot of concepts, you’re actually reading something to the side that you’re looking at and you have to have your eyes over there to read that defender so you can get it out on time. Or you have a solo route like a deep comeback where you’re not really reading anybody and you’re not expecting anybody to be sitting back there at 18 yards reading your eyes the entire time. So you can get your eyes there a little bit earlier than you would otherwise because it’s about getting lined up and getting set up to be to throw to make the throw on time more than it is about you know holding somebody with your eyes. Only thing I will say sometimes quarterbacks can get someplace too early with their eyes and it can mess up their timing. So I was a guy that liked to take my drop, understand the timing of a throw. So, if I was throwing a one-on-one, um, it was get there early enough where I could be set and and and hitch into it and and and be lined up so I could be, uh, accurate with the throw, but not too early that I wanted to rush it. Because when your eyes and feet sometimes get there, you know, you’re like, “Okay, I want to throw it. He’s not ready, and now I’m I’m I’m, you know, kind of playing catch-up.” And so those kinds of things, it’s it’s all relative to a situation instead of, you know, us always coming back and saying, “Well, gosh, he was staring down his receiver or, you know, this guy got to got to jump because of that.” Um, that’s not always the case and and oftentimes it’s not because quarterbacks should have their eyes to the side that they’re throwing to um, you know, in most situations so they can read and make those plays on time. for you with some of the the great receivers that you were able to be so productive with at multiple teams. How how does that balance end up working where you know there are times where maybe you want to manipulate coverage with your eyes as a QB while also there are times where you do need to know what is the leverage of the defensive back? How is my wide receiver perhaps adjusting on the fly to the coverage that’s being seen and landmarks that are being hit? How did you get on kind of the same page with some of the wide outs that you were so productive with? Yeah, I mean I think you make a very valid point. There are a lot of things that happen in the course of a play that, you know, again, you know, I talk about casuals. I talk about a lot of fans that don’t really understand it. And, you know, it’s easy to come back and draw up a play on a board and say this is how it’s going to work. And, you know, this is where he’s going to be when you get there. and the defense is basically going to avoid them and let them run right to where we’re drawing them up on paper and it’s going to be easy and then you get out there and all of those things happen that you’re talking about a like uh okay the safety is not in the exact same position that you know we said he was going to be in when we watched him on film or my receiver got banged at the five yard mark so how does that affect what he’s going to do you know there’s press coverage over on you know again we’ll just use that comeback press coverage on on a comeback to the left, man. I want to see maybe his release early to see if he wins quickly or if he’s getting jammed and what that’s going to mean when I come back to him. And so there are all kinds of different elements that force guys to adjust, you know, midstream, midplay. Um, and so a big thing, you know, for me was, uh, a trusting my guys, you know, like, you know, and and we talked a lot about details places that I were was. And I harped on it a lot, like this is where I need you, you know, like you have to push this to 12 yards and this is the angle that I’m expecting you to come off on. the only way it changes is if this happens, you know, and um you know, and those kinds of things are so vital in, you know, paying attention to the details, harping on the details, practicing the details because the more you allow for leniency from guys, hey, you know, best release for you, you know, go inside, go outside, doesn’t matter. To me, no, you got to go inside. Why? Because it affects a linebacker and it affects how I’m going to throw it and it affects the window to the guy outside of you. And so I think all of those things were the things that we worked on and when we were running routes is like this is what I need from you. This is what you have to do and here’s why you have to do it. And so um to me like if something didn’t happen right in practice, man, I was the first one over there saying, “Hey, can’t have that. Got to do this. Got to adjust this way.” And so, um, right or wrong, it was about me knowing exactly what those guys were going to do because we talked about it. And so, I wasn’t, you know, midstream in a game going, shoot, here we are. We never really talked about this scenario. Is he going to come out flat? Is he going to come out high? Right? Those are the things that you don’t want because now a you’re either guessing as a quarterback which leads to mistakes or you’re hesitating as a quarterback that leads to mistakes. Um so to me it’s about trying to see and talk through and think through every scenario that could happen. It’s about detailing every aspect of things. This is what I need from you. This is why I see it this way. This is what’s important on this route. So when it comes out and I’m looking the other way to hold the safety or I’m trying to hold a linebacker inside, I know exactly where you’re going to be, what your landmark is, and you got to make sure you get there at this depth every time because that’s going to give us the best chance to succeed. Kurt, uh, you mentioned Drake May. Um, he agreed with you on this particular game. He said, quote, “I left some out there that I ended up running that I could have thrown,” said Drake May. But overall, we’re looking at a guy who’s got a quarterback rating over 100 in six straight games. And in all of those, he’s thrown for 200 or more yards. Like, there’s Woof. Uh, do the Patriots Do the Patriots have something very special in this 23-year-old kid drafted after Caleb Williams? I mean, I think he’s got a chance. I mean, the thing that he’s doing so incredibly well is throwing the ball down the field. like he is so accurate on the big throws right now and he’s getting numerous big throws every single game and so where he may be missing. So I think about them last year. Last year, you know, he he had some good moments. I thought he played well last year, but you know, it wasn’t anything like this year because last year they hardly ever got big plays. And so now when you’re not getting some of those chunk big plays, now it becomes vital that you’re not leaving stuff out there. you’re not taking off and running when you’ve got something working for you because every one of those completions is so vital for you to finish and score. Well, if you miss one of those and let leave one out there and then you come back and hit a 40 yard um you know, four more times in the game, those things can be covered up a little bit more. And so, uh he’s doing a lot of things really well and they’re doing some things really well. And I love Josh McDaniels and I believe what he’s going to bring to Drake May. you add in the physical gifts, u you know, the athletic ability and yeah, I mean, we’re seeing something really good in a secondear player, uh, that excites you because he’s putting all of those things together. You understand the, you know, the physical, um, you know, has a chance to be special. So, I’m excited about what I’m seeing from Drake May right now. I would probably say of all the secondyear guys, he is playing by far better than any of those guys. You know, Jaden was unbelievable last year. He’s not playing nearly as well. Bo had some good moments last year. Don’t think he’s playing nearly as well. I think Caleb’s playing better, uh, but not quite up to Drake’s standard, uh, you know, that he’s playing at right now. And so, I think he’s the best secondyear quarterback that we’re seeing right now. And there’s still a lot of room for improvement for him moving forward. Kurt Warner, great stuff, man. Thank you so much. We’ll talk to you next week. You got it, guys. Talk to you soon. Appreciate it. That’s Curt Warner who uh joined us right there. Hello.

On the Spiegel & Holmes Show, analyst and Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner shared what he saw from the Bears’ offense in the team’s 26-14 win against the Saints in Week 7. Warner sees the Bears’ offense coming together and still sees growth in quarterback Caleb Williams despite his struggles against the Saints.

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