The Chicago Bears and quarterback Caleb Williams came up just short against the Green Bay Packers in Week 14, losing the game by a final score of 28-21.
In what was a huge opportunity for the Bears to make a strong statement with a win over their bitter rivals, they couldn’t quite get it done. They played a strong game and proved that they’re a team to watch, but a loss is a loss.
Williams ended up completing 19 of his 35 pass attempts for 186 yards, two touchdowns, and one interceptions in the game. He also picked up 14 yards on four rushing attempts. It wasn’t the best game for him, especially in the first half.
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At the end of the day, Chicago simply didn’t make enough plays. There are some positives to take away from the game for the Bears, but there is still a lot of work to do before playing the Packers again in Week 16.
Following the loss to Green Bay, Williams spoke out with some clear honestly, especially when it came to his final throw of the game which resulted in an interception by Keisean Nixon in the end zone.
He admitted that he needed to make a better throw in that moment.
“Rolled out and saw Cole, I tried to give him a big-boy ball, try and let him go up for it because I ended up seeing [Nixon] start to sprint,” Williams said. “I tried to slow them up and kind of give him a chance. In those moments, it’s a got-to-have-it moment. They had a guy trailing me, so I didn’t feel like I could go get it myself.”
Following the explanation of the play, Williams shouldered the responsibility for the play ending in disaster.
“Just got to give Cole a better shot at it. I think next time, just extend him a little bit more and kind of lead him. But, in those moments, you want to put the ball in play and trust your guy or try to have your guy go make a play and just got to give him a better ball.”
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With the loss, the Bears now hold a 9-4 record. They still appear likely to head on to the NFL playoffs, but that still isn’t a guarantee. Chicago will need to take care of business in Week 15 against the Cleveland Browns.
Losing a game is never a good thing, but the Bears have a lot to be positive about after losing to the Packers. There are things to fix, but the talent is there for Chicago to make a run down the stretch of the season and into the playoffs.
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