Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams is taking an unprecedented beating this season, and the numbers paint a grim picture. Through 13 games, Williams has been sacked 56 times—15 more than any other quarterback in the NFL this year—and has lost 377 yards as a result, leading the league in both categories by a significant margin, reported by Yardbarker.
“That’s bad,” but what’s worse is the historical pace Williams is on. With four games remaining in the season, Williams is projected to take 73 sacks and lose 493 yards on sacks, numbers that put him dangerously close to breaking long-standing NFL records.
The current record for most times sacked in a single season is 76, set by David Carr in 2002 during his rookie year with the expansion Houston Texans. The record for most yards lost on sacks in a season is 489, set by Randall Cunningham back in 1986. Williams is only slightly behind Carr’s pace for sacks but slightly ahead of Cunningham’s record for yards lost.
The most recent evidence of Williams’ struggles came on Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers, where he was sacked a staggering seven times, losing 46 yards in the process. With each game, the Bears’ offensive issues become harder to ignore.
If Chicago has any hope of salvaging its season and protecting its franchise quarterback, fixing the sack problem is priority number one. Interim head coach Thomas Brown knows this all too well. “If there’s one thing Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown needs to get fixed over the next four weeks, that’s it.”
The combination of poor pass protection, slow-developing plays, and Williams’ own tendencies to extend plays has created a perfect storm. While Williams has shown flashes of brilliance, his ability to escape pressure hasn’t been enough to save him from this alarming trend.
Breaking NFL records is usually a celebrated achievement, but for Williams, threatening these marks underscores a dire need for change. The Bears cannot afford to let their young quarterback endure a season like this without taking drastic measures to improve his protection.
As Chicago heads into the final stretch of the season, all eyes will be on Williams—and the Bears’ offensive line—to see if they can avoid a place in NFL history that no one wants to claim.