Caleb Williams' latest heroic comeback effort propelled the Bears to their sixth win in their last seven games on Sunday.
It also prompted his coach, Ben Johnson, to compare the quarterback to a famous magician.
"He looks like a Houdini back there in the backfield because that's a really good pass-rushing front that they've given a lot of teams fits," Johnson said following Chicago's 24-20 triumph over the New York Giants, via ESPN. "There were times where he's trying to escape and making some things happen. He had a couple throws down the field, but over 50 yards again rushing for the second week in a row, and I thought in the fourth quarter there we really needed that as a shot in the arm to end up winning that ballgame. So credit to him."
Credit is undoubtedly due to Williams, who spent a significant portion of the snowy Sunday afternoon evading a Giants pass rush that has, as Johnson said, caused plenty of problems for previous opponents. The going certainly wasn't easy for Williams, either, which was evident in his final passing line: 20 for 36, 220 yards and one touchdown.
The numbers don't tell the whole story, though. On multiple occasions, Williams broke the pocket and scrambled before firing off-platform rockets downfield to open targets. On two occasions, his receivers bobbled and/or dropped accurate passes in the end zone. The normally reliable Olamide Zaccheaus alone accounted for at least three drops.
As the game grew late and Chicago's win probability dropped to as low as 6 percent (after Williams narrowly missed an open Rome Odunze with less than six minutes to play), it seemed as if the Bears would end up walking off the Soldier Field turf lamenting their missed opportunities. That's when Williams activated his clutch gene, connecting with tight end Colston Loveland for a gain of 20. A few plays later, Williams took off on a 29-yard scramble that finished just short of the end zone, setting up a 2-yard touchdown pass to Odunze to cut the deficit to 20-17.
The rapid production was just the latest example of Williams' continued evolution as Chicago's franchise quarterback, one that has seen him embrace chances to run when he's exhausted the available time to survey the field.
"I think he got the green light to go ahead and use his legs more because teams are playing two-mans, quarters and man-to-man, so he can just be able to get out with his legs and be another weapon," wide receiver DJ Moore said.
When Chicago forced New York to punt -- a shank that went off the side of punter Jamie Gillan's foot -- Williams received one final opportunity to lead the Bears to glory. He connected with Luther Burden III for a gain of 27, then took matters into his own hands once again, scrambling to the left and tightroping the sideline all the way into the end zone to take a 24-20 lead.
In a flash, the Bears erased a 10-point deficit and buried the Giants in an avalanche of momentum. None of it would have been possible without Williams' heroism.
"He's a unicorn, for sure," Loveland said. "I'm like, how is he not sacked? He's just running around, super slippery. But no, shout out to him. He's just so poised. He's in the huddle. He just went, 'do your job, do your job,' go out there, execute and making plays with his legs. I think that puts defenses in a bind."
The Giants certainly weren't the first team to find themselves in a crunch-time bind when facing Williams and the Bears (6-3). The Las Vegas Raiders, Cincinnati Bengals and Washington Commanders can each empathize with New York after Williams crushed their dreams with his arm and legs on Sunday.
The late-game comebacks and heart-stopping victories might not be good for the health of the average Bears fan, but none would argue with the results. Williams hopes these successes are merely the start of something greater.
"I've said it a couple times now, that it does build confidence that we can -- it doesn't matter the deficit we're at," Williams said. "It doesn't matter how much we're up. It doesn't matter what happened throughout the game. We can come through as a team, and that's what we did today."
