Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has been under scrutiny since becoming a heralded No. 1 pick several years ago, and now he’s getting valuable advice from all-time great Tom Brady.
Williams and the Bears have certainly looked better this season, with a 9-4 record and a potential playoff spot in sight. However, each week brings more scrutiny over what Williams is doing right and wrong while playing in the NFL.
During a recent episode of “The Herd with Colin Cowherd,” Colin spoke with the seven-time Super Bowl winner, Brady, who is now calling games for Fox Sports. He’s watched many of the league’s quarterbacks play, whether from the bench or the box, and has warned that Williams needs to improve a critical aspect of his game to achieve any postseason success.
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That comes down to how accurate quarterbacks are with their passing, and if a QB struggles with it, Brady suggests they’ll have trouble in the playoffs, especially if they don’t have a comfortable lead.
Colin suggested that Williams can do a lot with his “horsepower,” so it may not matter how accurate his passes are. However, Brady contended that aspect is essential in the NFL.
“I always care about accuracy from a quarterback standpoint, because when you get to the bigger games and the playoffs, and the defenses are better, and the margin of error is less, you have to be an incredibly accurate passer,” Brady told Cowherd, explaining that the passing game is necessary when teams trail in a game.
“When you are down 28-3, you better be extremely accurate, because the windows are very tight. You’re gonna have to throw 30 or 40 passes in the second half and overtime of a game,” he said.
While Brady suggested there are ways to get around not having the accuracy, he also said he believes the NFL is “a passing league” that “always has been and always will be.”
“When the rubber meets the road, and you’re in big-time moments, and you’re in games where it’s very contested, you’re going against a team that’s at the same pedigree, you better be an elite passer, an elite processor. You Better have great intangibles and resilience built in you to be a leader of that team,” he said.
Williams has thrown for nearly 3,000 yards and almost 20 touchdowns in his team’s improved season. He’s connected on 249-of-431 pass attempts and has a low 53.4 QBR. That’s improved from his 43.3 QBR last season, and he’s shown moments of brilliance, including several impressive passes in last Sunday’s loss to the Green Bay Packers.
Chicago, currently considered No. 7 in the NFC’s playoff picture, has four games left in its quest to make the playoffs behind Williams. Next up, he’ll take on another quarterback under some scrutiny, as the Bears host Shedeur Sanders and the Browns on Sunday.
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