Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sport
Ryan Phillips

Caleb Williams Makes NFL History With Never-Seen-Before Stat Line in Bears’ Win

Caleb Williams accomplished something no one in NFL history had done before during the Bears’ wild 47-42 win over the Bengals in Week 9.

Chicago’s second-year quarterback finished the game 20-of-34 for 280 yards and three passing touchdowns, added 53 yards on five carries, while also catching two passes for 22 yards and a touchdown. He filled up the statsheet in a way no player has before.

The Bears became the first team in NFL history to have a player with three or more touchdown passes (Williams), another with a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown (DJ Moore), and a third player rush for 150-plus yards (Kyle Monangai) in the same game.

According to WTF Stats, Williams is the first player in NFL history to have multiple passing touchdowns, multiple receptions, and a receiving touchdown in a game. He’s also effectively the first starting quarterback to catch multiple passes in a game in modern NFL history.

The Bears were down 42-40 after a late Bengals touchdown. Williams and the offense got the ball back at their own 28-yard line with 53 seconds remaining. They were able to move it out to the 42-yard line after a scramble from the second-year signal-caller earned them a first down. On the next play, Williams dropped back and fired a strike to tight end Colston Loveland, who came down with the ball at the 36-yard line, bounced off a defender, and scampered the rest of the way for a 58-yard touchdown.

Chicago wound up coming away with a 47-42 victory in the crazy back-and-forth affair.

Williams was at his best when the Bears were behind. Pro Football Focus notes that when his team was trailing, Williams accounted for 301 total yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions, and a 124.0 passer rating.

Through nine weeks, the 23-year-old is on pace for 4,071 passing yards, 26 passing touchdowns, nine interceptions, and 389 rushing yards with four more scores. It’s also worth noting that he has vastly improved on Ben Johnson’s watch.

This team isn’t like old Bears squads, and has now improved to 5-3 with the struggling Giants next on the docket.


More NFL on Sports Illustrated


This article was originally published on www.si.com as Caleb Williams Makes NFL History With Never-Seen-Before Stat Line in Bears’ Win.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.