No, the Chicago Bears didn't beat the Green Bay Packers in Week 11. Yes, the losing streak extended to 11 games, and Bears fans are as sick as ever after Cairo Santos' potentially game-winning field goal was blocked on the last play of the game.
The Bears are now 4-6, and the season feels over, but it isn't meaningless. The next seven games are as important as any seven-game stretch in recent team history.
The development of rookie quarterback Caleb Williams has always been the most important goal of 2024, and if there's any silver lining from the Bears' loss on Sunday, Williams looked every bit like a franchise quarterback who's capable of ending the Packers curse... eventually.
Williams earned the Bears' highest Pro Football Focus grade of the week and his second-best mark of the season: 85.2.
Per @TruMediaSports, Bears QB Caleb Williams had an average time to throw of 2.62 seconds, a season-low. His EPA (expected points added) vs. the blitz was 0.86, his second-best of the season. His 101.3 passer rating on third down was a season-high.
— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) November 18, 2024
Williams finished the game 23 of 31 for 231 yards. He played turnover-free football (again!) and added 70 yards rushing. And it was this sequence of three passes that may have changed the entire trajectory of his rookie year:
Loss aside, Caleb Williams pulling out 3 straight hero plays in a row on 3 snaps in crunch time was very promising pic.twitter.com/2TFtFbJZr4
— Football Digest (@FoootballDigest) November 17, 2024
Caleb Williams wasn't the only Bears player who did well on offense against the Packers, which, by the way, is a credit to new offensive coordinator Thomas Brown. Braxton Jones, who led the way for D'Andre Swift's 37-yard touchdown, had the second-highest grade on the team with an 82.0.
GET OFF THE TRAIN TRACKS WHEN BRAXTON JONES IS COMING THROUGH
— Barstool Chicago (@barstoolchicago) November 17, 2024
pic.twitter.com/xbUJfW5aLA
Rookie wideout Rome Odunze was third with a 76.2. Odunze finished the game with six catches for 65 yards and proved to be Williams' most trusted target when the game mattered most.
It's unfortunate Williams and the Bears didn't end Week 11 with a win over the Packers, but there's no doubt the first overall pick from the 2024 NFL Draft played like a franchise quarterback.
