HOUSTON (AP) — Caleb Williams and Chicago’s offense was bailed out by defense and special-teams scoring to get a win over Tennessee in their opener last week.
The No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft wasn’t as fortunate Sunday night against the Houston Texans.
Williams was 23 of 37 for 174 yards with two interceptions in a 19-13 loss. He was sacked seven times.
He was asked what bothered him most about the night.
“Not coming out with the win, not executing when we needed to as a team,” Williams said. “Myself, throwing two interceptions. It’s not something that I’ve done or something that I do. I think those are the things that I’m most frustrated about. We didn’t execute the way we needed to. We’re going to keep getting better. I’m a young guy and it’s a long season.”
The defeat came after the Bears failed to score a touchdown on offense last week but overcame a 17-point deficit for a 24-17 win with a blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown and an interception return for another score.
On Sunday night, Williams struggled while under heavy pressure for most of the night. The Bears got their first offensive touchdown of the season on a 2-yard run by Khalil Herbert just before halftime to cut Houston’s lead to 13-10.
But the Bears managed just a field goal the rest of the way as both interceptions by Williams came after halftime to help Houston hang on for the win.
“He was able to evade the rush and get on the perimeter a few times, but then he has to be careful with the football when he gets out there,” coach Matt Eberflus said. “So, there were some great learning moments for him.”
While much of the criticism for Chicago's offensive struggles has fallen on Williams, Eberflus was quick to point out that the rest of the team has to do more help him. He was disappointed that his team had just 71 yards rushing.
“I believe protection is everybody — it’s the tight ends, it’s the offensive line, it’s the runners, it’s the quarterback, it’s everybody involved,” he said. “And obviously, we need to do a better job of running the ball than what we did. We also need to establish the running game better than what we did because it’s always a good friend for a young quarterback when you can do that.”
Williams and Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud, the second overall pick in last year’s draft, talked for a bit after the game. Last year’s AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, shared some of what he told Williams.
“Everything that got you here is going to take care of you in the long run,” Stroud said he told Williams. “Don’t put your head down, don’t let a hard time humble you. It’s not going to be easy, but you got picked at No. 1 for a reason, because they trust in you and believe in you. I definitely think he’ll be better as he goes on.”
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