Caleb Williams had just walked off the field after being chased by Minnesota’s Jonathan Greenard during another failed third-down play for Chicago. He sat down on the bench, leaning his head back in exhaustion.
Williams had taken a hard hit to the midsection from Jihad Ward just before throwing an incomplete pass early in the fourth quarter. He leaned to his left, looking like he needed a place to lie down, showing signs of tiredness, pain, and frustration.
The Vikings can have that kind of effect on a young quarterback.
“We were really disciplined, but it just felt explosive, guys flying off the edges,” said coach Kevin O’Connell after the 30-12 win over the Bears on Monday night. “When that thing is moving, it just felt like it was relentless.”
Though the Vikings only had two sacks, they kept Williams under pressure all night. The first overall pick in the draft used his athleticism to avoid some of the pressure, but he often started scrambling earlier than needed, leading to several inaccurate throws.
Williams only completed three passes over 15 yards, all in the second half when the Bears were down by two or more scores.
Williams finished 18 for 31 for 191 yards and one touchdown, with a passer rating of 86.9, his worst in six weeks. His streak without an interception extended to eight games, with 286 consecutive passes, an NFL rookie record.
But the Vikings showed the kind of dominant defensive play they had been missing in recent games, leading to their seventh straight win and a 12-2 record that ties them with Detroit for first place in the NFC North. Greenard’s sack in the first quarter forced a fumble that led to their first touchdown. Dallas Turner’s sack in the fourth quarter caused a punt.
Three weeks ago in Chicago, Williams threw for 340 yards and two touchdowns in Minnesota’s 30-27 overtime win.
“We watched the film from the last game, and he looked like a magician out there, so today we said, ‘Let’s not let him look like that again,’” said safety Cam Bynum. “He still escaped a few times and made it tough on us in the secondary, but they were still chasing him down up front.”
