Caleb Williams is playing unlike any NFL QB. It’s working, but is it sustainable? — Video

The Chicago Bears are one of the best teams in the NFL.

One of the main reasons: The team’s second-year quarterback Caleb Williams is taking very few sacks.

But how?

In one of the more confusing developments, Williams is holding the ball on average longer than any quarterback since 2012 (minimum 350 dropbacks), even as he took 68 sacks as a rookie in 2024, but his sack rate dropped from second-worst in the league (10.8 percent) last season to sixth-best (4.8). Entering the team’s Week 13 game on Friday. Philadelphia Eagles.

This is against logic.

We take a deeper look at the numbers and game tape in the video at the top of this column.

The two charts below appear only here.

The first chart shows 2025 Williams (orange dot) alone in the lower-right corner to avoid a sack among the 433 passer-rating eligible QBs since 2013. He has been holding the ball an average of 3.13 seconds before a throw, sack or crossing the line of scrimmage, without picking up many sacks.

The blue dot represents the 2024 Williams, who took sacks at more than twice the rate, while holding the ball longer than most quarterbacks.

The second chart shows the relationship between how long Williams held the ball each season and how many times he took sacks, with the third row showing the league average over those two seasons.

Under new head coach Ben Johnson, Chicago’s jump in offensive EPA (+7.3) per game from 2024 is the fifth-largest year-to-year increase in the NFL, according to TruMedia. More than half of that improvement (3.8 EPA per game, or 52 percent) stems from one big change: a decrease in sacks taken by the quarterback.

The Bears rebuilt their interior offensive line in the offseason, which improved Williams’ protection, but he has also been far more elusive against opposing pass rushers.

Is any of this sustainable for Williams? He held the ball for less time than usual in the Bears’ win over Pittsburgh last week (an average of 2.52 seconds), but the Steelers still sacked him and recovered the resulting fumble for a touchdown in a game where Williams held the ball the longest (4.9 seconds).

It will be interesting to see what happens if Williams continues to lead the league in tackles for how long he holds the ball. A talented escape artist and runner, he can make big plays for both teams in those situations. He has cut down on negative plays massively this season.