Caleb Williams’ stats might not jump off the screen, but he always seems to play his best when the spotlight is at its brightest. All signs point to him being the franchise quarterback Chicago has been yearning for.

Williams has thrown two touchdowns in three straight games, and he will hope to do the same in Sunday night’s matchup against San Francisco. The game has massive playoff implications for both teams, as they both sit at 11-4 and are well within reach of the top seed in the NFC.

The game looks sure to be an offensive shootout, as the 49ers have one of the most explosive offenses in the league. They also have one of the league’s most innovative offensive playcallers, Kyle Shanahan, running the show.

Shanahan’s opinion should not be taken lightly. He made it clear how highly he thinks of Williams when speaking to reporters yesterday.

“Caleb is one of the best throwers and athletic quarterbacks I’ve ever seen. He makes some big-time throws. Extremely scary on the perimeter. It makes sense why he’s playing at such a high level.”

Kyle Shanahan with high praise for Bears quarterback Caleb Williams pic.twitter.com/mMMJivgxe0

— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) December 24, 2025Could Shanahan just be hyping up an opponent? Sure. That happens every week across the league.

He could’ve used much less expressive adjectives if he were simply performing coach speak. There’s a reason why he gave him his flowers.

Williams was the number one pick of last year’s draft for a reason. He’s starting to live up to the hype.

The most recent pass the second-year signal-caller threw was a 46-yard dagger through the heart of Chicago’s hated division rival. The pass was on the money from 55 yards through the air with the wind off of Lake Michigan swirling. Simply put, it was one of the best passes of the season.

In fact, according to the Pro Football Focus grading scale, it was one of the best throws in recent history.

REVIEWED AND CONFIRMED!!!

Caleb Williams’ game-winning TD is the FIRST throw this season to earn a +2 on the PFF Grade scale (the highest grade possible)

It is just the 31st throw in PFF history, including preseason and playoffs, to earn a +2pic.twitter.com/N6fNYnBPMH

— Dalton Wasserman (@PFF_Dalton) December 21, 2025

The numbers also support his claim that Williams is an elite athlete. While he didn’t turn on the nitrous too often last season, his speed on the perimeter has been on full display this season.

Rushes of 20+ MPH amongst Quarterbacks:

4 — Caleb Williams

5 — All other QBs

18 has wheels 💨 pic.twitter.com/wa760iidVQ

— BearsMuse (@ChiBearsMuse) December 9, 2025

49ers’ defensive coordinator Robert Saleh echoed a similar sentiment to Shanahan when speaking about Williams’ playmaking ability.

“His arm talent is elite,” Saleh said. “He can rip the ball and make every throw. It feels like when he starts scrambling, he gets more accurate. He’s improved tremendously from a year ago.”

Williams hasn’t received as much hype as his fellow second-year QB Drake Maye has this season, or Jayden Daniels did last season. However, he’s proving, without a shadow of a doubt, that he was well worth the first overall pick.

The scariest part of the equation for opposing defenses is that Williams isn’t even close to his ceiling. The sky is the limit for how far he can go from here.Ben Johnson responds to criticism surrounding Austin Booker’s “dirty” hitWhat to expect from Bears’ receiver Jahdae Walker going forward?Nahshon Wright’s Pro Bowl snub makes no sense, and their division rival even knows itThe Week 16 Bears/49ers game looks destined to be a shootout