Bears quarterback Caleb Williams will undergo tests Monday to determine the severity of the right hamstring injury he sustained against the Vikings.
“We’ll know tomorrow,” Bears coach Ben Johnson said, adding that he spoke with Williams, who was in “good spirits” after the game.
Williams exited Chicago’s 9-3 loss to the Vikings midway through the fourth quarter with the Bears deep in Minnesota territory.
One play after running back Kyle Monangai converted a fourth down with 8:30 to play, Williams ran to his left off a bootleg on first-and-goal with a clear path to the end zone. He went down awkwardly as it appeared Andrew Van Ginkel clipped Williams’ heel while trying to make a tackle, but the Vikings’ outside linebacker said postgame that he did not make contact with Williams.
“I was just chasing him,” Van Ginkel said. “I dove, missed him and then he just went down. I hope he’s OK.”
Williams let out a yell as he grabbed for his hamstring and tried twice to get to his feet on his own. He was helped off the field by two trainers and spent several minutes in the injury tent before being carted back to the locker room.
Williams was emotional as he rode away. He pulled a towel off his head as he neared the northwest tunnel of Soldier Field and raised his right arm in the air to give fans a thumbs-up.
The Bears ruled Williams out for the remainder of the game not long after he got back to the locker room.
Williams has rarely dealt with injuries dating back to college. During the 2022 season at USC, Williams injured his left hamstring on a 59-yard run during the Pac-12 championship game against Utah. He did not leave the game and played in the Cotton Bowl the following week. After the Bears’ loss, Williams was seen walking through the locker room under his own power while media members were present, and he did not have a wrap around his leg.
Williams was replaced by backup quarterback Tyson Bagent, and the Bears failed to score a touchdown despite running two plays inside Minnesota’s 6-yard line. Trailing 6-3 at the time, the Bears attempted to tie the score when Cairo Santos lined up for a 23-yard field goal, but his attempt was blocked.
“It would’ve been nice to put it in the end zone when we’re that close,” Bagent said. “The drive after that, being able to have a chance at the end zone was all you can ask for. On my end, got to be better executing when we get down there.”
Bagent threw back-to-back incomplete passes from Minnesota’s 12-yard line and was sacked on the final play of the game when the Vikings’ Dallas Turner bulldozed through tight end Colston Loveland, who was singled up with the outside linebacker.
Despite the Bears’ inability to pull off a come-from-behind victory, Bagent received praise for his late-game execution.
One week after scoring 59 points against the Carolina Panthers, the Bears’ offense struggled against an aggressive Vikings defense. Minnesota blitzed Williams on 78% of his dropbacks and stifled Chicago’s passing attack. On throws of 10-plus air yards. Williams went just 1-for-4 with an interception. In Week 1, Williams went 7-of-11 for 160 yards and a touchdown on those same throws.
Chicago’s 56-point drop-off is the second largest from one game to the next in the Super Bowl era.
