Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has shown a knack for dramatic finishes in his second NFL season.
Four of the team’s six wins have come via game-winning drives in the fourth quarter, including Sunday’s 24-20 win over the Giants. The Bears trailed 20-10 after a Younghoe Koo field goal in the fourth quarter, but Williams led a pair of touchdown drives to make the team a winner for the sixth time in their last seven games.
Williams’ ability to make plays with his feet loomed large on both drives. Williams had a 29-yard scramble to set up a touchdown pass to Rome Odunze and he scored the game-winner on a 17-yard run on the next possession. Williams ran for 52 yards in the fourth quarter and head coach Ben Johnson compared the quarterback to a famous escape artist in his postgame press conference.
“He looks like a Houdini back there in the backfield, because that’s a really good pass-rushing front,” Johnson said. “They’ve given a lot of teams fits. I think [Brian] Burns is leading the NFL in sacks. There were times where he’s trying to escape and making some things happen. He had a couple throws down the field, but over 50 yards again rushing for the second week in a row, and I thought in the fourth quarter there we really needed that as a shot in the arm to end up winning that ballgame. So, credit to him.”
Both Williams and Johnson said they’d like to see the team avoid the need for so many late-game heroics, but the confidence that comes with knowing that games aren’t over even if you’re trailing in the fourth quarter should serve the Bears well as they try to find their way into the playoffs come January.
