There was so much expected of Williams in his rookie season that we sometimes forget he wasn’t a complete disaster. He did some impressive things for a player who had never played pro football, throwing for 3,541 yards with 20 touchdowns and six interceptions and rushing for another 489 yards. Legends like Peyton Manning and John Elway would’ve loved to have produced those kinds of numbers as rookies. The problem for Williams, the top pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, was that he was supposed to be a generational talent, then didn’t create much magic for a Bears team that finished 5-12 and imploded in epic fashion. The Bears quarterback heads into Year 2 with plenty of reasons to believe better days are coming.

His new coach, Ben Johnson, is one of the most innovative minds in football. Bears general manager Ryan Poles retooled the interior of an offensive line that was largely responsible for a league-high 68 sacks and added two more pass-catchers in the draft (tight end Colston Loveland and wide receiver Luther Burden III) to an already deep group of skill players. The Bears had to do all this not only to help their second-year quarterback prosper. They’re also playing in the NFC North, which has turned into the toughest division in football. There isn’t a team in that division that shouldn’t be thinking about winning it and making a deep playoff run. If Williams does his part, it wouldn’t be crazy for the Bears to dream the same thoughts.

It won’t be an easy road for Williams, whose Bears face the second most difficult strength of schedule in the league, including playing in one of the best divisions. But if there’s anyone who can get the best out of Williams, it’s Johnson. And with improvements all around, Williams should show vast improvement even in just one year.

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