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In 2022 and 2023, Caleb Williams was public enemy number one for a lot of Notre Dame football fans. It was central to Notre Dame's season to stop Caleb, because the quarterback played for rival USC. Notre Dame's massive Chicago "Subway Alumni" base desperately wanted Caleb Williams to fail. Then Caleb became a member of the Chicago Bears, and everything has changed.
Caleb Williams didn't just lead the Chicago Bears to an NFL playoff win over the hated Green Bay Packers on Saturday night; he did so in the most improbable and theatrical way imaginable. The Bears were down 21-3 at halftime, and down 21-6 entering the fourth quarter. They were still down 27-16 with 5:30 left in the fourth quarter. Yet, as we have seen so many times this season -- it is hard to keep track -- the Bears and Caleb Williams came alive in the fourth quarter after playing three mediocre quarters. They rallied from a deficit in the final two minutes of regulation to take the lead and win. They have been doing this again and again and again. It is unlike anything we -- and Notre Dame football fans, and Chicago Bears football fans -- have ever seen. It's happening because the former USC quarterback is becoming a star in the Midwest's biggest metropolis before our eyes.
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Chicago sports superfan and Notre Dame writer weighs in
2022
In 2022, Caleb Williams cemented his Heisman Trophy with an elite performance against Notre Dame. The Notre Dame fans and writers who are cheering Caleb Williams today were left frustrated just over three years ago when the quarterback made a very good Fighting Irish defense look inadequate.
2023
Caleb Williams threw three interceptions, making Notre Dame fans extremely happy. The USC offensive line got torn to shreds by the Irish pass rush, but Caleb certainly didn't handle the situation well. This began a second-half slide for the Trojans, a skid from which they frankly haven't recovered. USC squandered Caleb's final season as a Trojan, but the plot twists were only just beginning.
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2024 NFL draft
Caleb Williams went to the Chicago Bears at No. 1. The Notre Dame Subway Alumni and the legions of Bears fans throughout the Midwest -- who had cheered so vociferously against Caleb -- now welcomed him to the Windy City as a new member of the family and a hoped-for savior of a franchise which had fallen on hard times.
Bears quarterback history
The Chicago Bears, given they are a charter member of the National Football League with over 100 years of history to their name, have had the worst quarterback luck (or outcomes) of any NFL franchise. The organization still doesn't have a single quarterback who has thrown for 4,000 yards in a regular season. Caleb Williams came really close this season, but the larger point remains: Few franchises have had as many mediocre quarterbacks as the Bears have. Their only Super Bowl-winning quarterback: Jim McMahon, who was very good but not an all-time great. Their other Super Bowl quarterback: Rex Grossman, who was good in 2006 but had an otherwise forgettable pro career. Caleb Williams came to Chicago burdened with the task of trying to change over 100 years of history, minus Sid Luckman, the one true giant among Bear quarterbacks.
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Matt Eberflus
Caleb Williams came into an organization coached by the clueless Matt Eberflus. It set back his development and led to a disastrous first year.
Ryan Poles
Ryan Poles, by not giving Caleb Williams a good -- and QB-friendly -- first-year coach, risked everything. The move was dumb and dangerous, and it led Chicago fans to rightly clamor for Poles' job.
Ben Johnson
Ryan Poles saved his job, the Bears themselves, and Caleb Williams' career by hiring Ben Johnson to replace Eberflus. Ben Johnson's value can be seen not only in Caleb's rise in Year 2, but in the Detroit Lions' noticeable decline the year after Johnson left Dan Campbell's side.
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The right coach
Superstar QB prospects -- players picked in the top five of any NFL draft -- can't generally succeed on their own. They need the right coach. Dan Marino had Don Shula in Miami. John Elway had Dan Reeves in Denver. Patrick Mahomes had Andy Reid. These guys probably don't thrive if sent to horrible franchises. This is why, for instance, John Elway smartly refused to play for the lowly Baltimore Colts. His career would have gone nowhere if he had gone that route.
Caleb Williams needed Ben Johnson. Luckily, the Bears grabbed him in Year 2. It changed everything.
Bears host divisional round game
The Bears, as the No. 2 seed, stay at home for the divisional round. They have a real chance of making the NFC Championship Game.
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Seahawks host divisional round game
The Seattle Seahawks and Sam Darnold will host the other NFC divisional round game next weekend. You can do the math here.
Two wins away from the USC football dream scenario
It's not likely, but it certainly is possible: We could have Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears playing Sam Darnold and the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship Game, with one USC quarterback guaranteed to make Super Bowl LX. USC won't play in the national championship game, but this is the next best thing.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Chicago-based Notre Dame fans love Caleb Williams more than ever
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