Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams suffered an injury against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 9, which is the last thing the now .500 franchise can afford.
The good news is that upon divulging the information to media members following the game, Chicago’s rookie QB said that he expects he will be alright.
“Bears QB Caleb Williams tweaked his left ankle late against the Cardinals, but says he believes he’s fine,” Jason Lieser of the Chicago Sun Times reported via an X post.
Caleb Williams Struggled Against Cardinals, Sacked 6 Times
GettyChicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has struggled behind a porous and unreliable offensive line all season long.
Williams was on his back far too frequently against the Cardinals, which has been a far too frequent theme for Chicago in general this season.
Arizona got to the Bears rookie quarterback a total of six times on Sunday, November 3, resulting in a loss of 45 total yards. The Cardinals added 12 total QB hits along with 6 sacks to the stat sheet, disrupting Williams’ flow all game long.
As a result, Chicago scored just 9 points and fell to the Cardinals by 20, as Williams completed just 22-of-41 passes for 217 yards. He didn’t throw an interception, though he also failed to score a touchdown.
In fact, the entire offense was only able to muster three field goals in what proved to be a sound defeat on the road that dropped the Bears to 4-4 on the season.
Injured Bears Offensive Line Struggled Against Cardinals
GettyChicago Bears left tackle Braxton Jones.
A huge part of the problem for Chicago has been the health and performance of the offensive line.
The Bears came into the game Sunday with what Zoltán Buday of Pro Football Focus ranked as the 20th best unit in the league. And key members of that group were banged up and either missed the game or played through a physical deficiency.
Offensive tackles Braxton Jones and Kiran Amegadjie both missed the contest due to injury, while right tackle Darnell Wright exited in the fourth quarter with a knee issue and didn’t return.
“Left tackle Braxton Jones and left guard Teven Jenkins left Week 8’s game with injuries. They were replaced by Kiran Amegadjie and Doug Kramer (after backup guard Bill Murray also got injured), respectively, and they earned the two lowest overall grades on the Chicago offensive line,” Buday wrote on October 30. “Prior to his injury, Jenkins earned a 90.5 PFF overall grade on 46 snaps to lead all guards in Week 8.”
The Bears host the New England Patriots at Soldier Field in Week 10 before finishing the season with two games against each of their NFC North Division opponents — all of whom are well above .500 — along with contests against the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers.
That schedule is the most difficult in the entire NFL, which renders making the playoffs a precarious proposition for Chicago even if it can scratch out a win against the Pats next Sunday.
The Bears certainly won’t be able to accomplish their postseason goal if the offensive line doesn’t give Williams more protection down the stretch than it did Sunday against Arizona.
