Will Caleb Williams and the Bears starters play on Saturday?
Chicago Bears fans got their first glimpse of the Caleb Williams era this past Saturday against the Buffalo Bills. Williams played two series and looked sharp overall, causing social media and NFL analysts to rave over his performance. Unfortunately, Bears fans may have to wait a little longer to see more of their prized rookie quarterback.
Bengals to sit starters this Saturday
Cincinnati Bengals’ head coach Zac Taylor stated today that he “isn’t anticipating” starters playing in this Saturday’s preseason game against the Bears, per Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic. The news comes as the Bears and Bengals are scheduled to participate in a joint practice this Thursday, followed by their preseason tilt on Saturday afternoon.
Zac Taylor said he’s not anticipating starters playing in Chicago but won’t take anything off the table for Indianapolis, specifically regarding Burrow.
The joint practice will give them plenty of work there.
— Paul Dehner Jr. (@pauldehnerjr) August 12, 2024
Generally, it can be assumed that Bears’ head coach Matt Eberflus would follow suit. Seeing as there is a joint practice just two days prior to the preseason matchup, the thinking is that the starters will get enough work in the joint practice. The Bears didn’t play their starters last year against the Colts in a preseason game after a pair of joint practices in Indianapolis. However, this situation is different, and I’ll tell you why.
It would be wise for Bears to give Caleb Williams reps against Bengals
The Chicago Bears have a brand new offensive coordinator this year in Shane Waldron. Pairing him and a rookie quarterback is going to require time and reps to get comfortable with the offensive scheme. Game reps are huge in this situation. Even if Williams gets work in the joint practice against the Bengals, it’s not the same as actual game reps. There is a different level of pressure and speed in a game that can’t be replicated in a practice, and Williams needs that experience.
Eberflus has also stated that he wants to get Williams and the Bears’ starters adequate reps this preseason. “I know the guys last year got 45-55 reps, in terms of those guys. And we’re looking at that right in that range – we’ll see,” said Eberflus in a press conference prior to the start of preseason. Since none of the starters played in the Hall of Fame Game against the Houston Texans, that would only leave one preseason game remaining to get those reps in if the starters sit this Saturday.
More will be known in the coming days leading up to Saturday’s game, but you very well could see Eberflus go off-script and give Williams and the starters a few series against the Bengals’ backups. While Williams looked great against Buffalo, both drives he led ultimately stalled out and led to field goals. This leaves more work to be done, and it’s important to get the reps – and the hiccups – worked through in the preseason.
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