Is Caleb Williams ready for takeoff?

Could Caleb Williams' injury become a blessing in disguise?

That would be quite the turnaround, considering how devastating Williams injury initially looked. Regardless of the tumult of the discourse that followed, Williams going down without contact in the fourth quarter against the Vikings in Week 2 looked like a disastrous hamstring or Achilles injury that might have ended Williams' season.

As it turned out, whether it was a Grade 1 or Grade 2 hamstring strain (or tear — same thing), Williams returned sooner than many who feared the worst expected, and his performance Sunday against the Falcons was a huge success — on more than one level.

By minimizing the risk of aggravating the injury, Williams —  presumably by Bears coach Ben Johnson's design — had a relatively conservative approach against the Falcons on Sunday that minimized his mobility and any instinctive bursts that could trigger a re-injury.

He only had two actual carries, both of them in the final six minutes of the fourth quarter when the Bears were trying to protect a 31-23 lead — a safe scramble out of bounds for a two-yard gain on first-and-10; and a quarterback sneak for a two-yard gain on third-and-one. And with a cautious approach, he was sacked four times — the most in one game in Johnson's offense since Week 2 against the Lions last season, when he also was sacked four times.

But while that is not Williams style and boxes him in to a degree, it actually enhanced his overall efficiency, and arguably emphasized a fundamental part of playing the position that hasn't been his strength. Williams completed his first 12 pass attempts and 30 of 36 for the game — a career-high 83.3%. And he still threw for 305 yards — the sixth-highest passing total in his career and third-highest in Johnson's offense. In this offense, "air yards" don't matter as much with that kind of production — Johnson's 8.5 yards per attempt is the sixth-best of his career.

It's difficult for player as talented as Williams to play in a box, because — unlike Tyson Bagent — there's so much big-play potential when he improvises under pressure and plays outside the pocket — as a passer and a runner. But executing an approach more suited for Case Keenum or Bagent might not be Williams' style, but it could be making him a better quarterback.

So it'll be interesting to see if Johnson takes the governor off his quarterback against the Patriots on Thursday Night Football at Soldier Field. At some point, good defenses will force Williams to go full throttle to make big plays and the Patriots are at that level (though like the Bears, the Patriots are vulnerable — sixth in total defense, but 16th in yards per play allowed). Then again, forcing Williams to play just a little tighter might be just what he needs to learn a nuance of Johnson's offense (that Jared Goff virtually perfected) that might lead to the anticipated breakout of an elite NFL quarterback.

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