Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) is sacked by Detroit Lions defensive end Za’Darius Smith (99) in the fourth quarter at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams needs to learn several lessons following the team’s 23-20 loss to the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving. While he was only partially to blame, Williams’ execution during the final 30 seconds of the fourth quarter got his head coach fired the next day. The No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft will now have his third offensive coordinator (Chris Beatty) since November.

Williams also needs to worry about taking hits. The 2022 Heisman Trophy winner at USC played his cards a little early in his career when it came to using the sideline to his advantage. At several points this season, Williams would act like he was about to slide or run out of bounds before taking advantage of a defensive player letting up to gain more yards.

On Thursday, the Lions said nope.

Chicago Bears quarterback took a nasty hit

Aug 22, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) talks with media on the sidelines against the Kansas City Chiefs during the second half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Linebacker Jack Campbell completed a tackle as Williams was headed out of bounds. The tackle could have hurt the quarterback’s knee. Following the game Williams complained he was frustrated about the tackle, but the hit was perfectly legal.

 

The Detroit Lions planned to hit Caleb Williams near the sideline

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© Kimberly P. Mitchell / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Amon-Ra St. Brown and Eqanimeous St. Brown talked about the tackle on the St. Brown Podcast. Amon-Ra said Lions head coach Dan Campbell told the team he warned the officials on game day that Detroit would be aggressive in tackling Williams near the sideline because Williams has a history of trying to fake defenses out by using NFL rules meant to protect the quarterback.

“The craziest part is before the game or in our team meeting, Dan was talking to us and he was showing clips of Caleb, like, going out of bounds, going back in and going out. He said, ‘No, you don’t.’ The beginning of it was, no, you don’t,” Amon-Ra said.

“And then it was just clips of him doing that. He goes, ‘If he does this, we’re going to hit his (expletive).’ And he said, ‘I already warned the refs. The refs know.’ So when it happened in the game, like, I already know there’s no flag because he wasn’t out of bounds. Jack hit his (expletive).”

Amon-Ra thinks the league protects the quarterback position too much, and they should curb the rules so quarterbacks like Williams cannot steal extra yards when a defender makes a good play.

NFL teams know what Williams is trying to do. Now he’ll have to adjust.
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© Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images