LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Caleb Williams yelled as he stomped away. During an individual period at a training camp last weekend, Williams and the other Chicago Bears quarterbacks were engaged in a rapid-fire throwing competition, aiming at targets in a net.
Williams' accuracy was off, and his emotional reaction, which was caught on video by fans during an open practice, sparked a social media firestorm. Was it an indication of bigger problems with a team that is under a microscope with first-year coach Ben Johnson, who is expected to develop the former No. 1 draft pick into a franchise quarterback while guiding the team to playoff contention?
Or did the frustration simply reflect Williams' competitive nature while dealing with the ups and downs of learning a complicated new offense?
General manager Ryan Poles wasn't worried.
«I actually think it's pretty cool,» Poles told ESPN about the uproar over the video. «I knew there was a bad practice. I've seen clips on Twitter. I didn't know it was a national crisis of Caleb struggling.»
Before anyone calls for backup Tyson Bagent to take snaps with the first team, consider that the Bears are practicing many of the concepts for the first time. And there have been bright spots, from the accountability and attention to detail that Johnson demands to the offense's execution in the two-minute drill. Still, a fan base that hasn't celebrated a playoff win since the 2010 season and is looking for its first franchise quarterback in over 80 years doesn't need much to get on edge.
«They've installed a lot — OTAs, now,» Williams said. «I take pride in trying to retain it all, every single detail that we have. I think that's where I've been growing so far since Ben's been here is retaining all of
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