Caleb Williams nears return, and Bears show they need their QB in lopsided loss to Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — The good news for the Chicago Bears on a hugely disappointing day is the possibility that quarterback Caleb Williams is getting closer to returning from the hamstring injury that has sidelined him for three games.

Chicago coach Ben Johnson said after a 31-7 loss at Green Bay on Sunday that Williams might be available when the Bears visit Atlanta next week. Williams practiced on a limited basis Friday.

“He’s on track,” Johnson said. “We’ll see if it’s Atlanta or after. I think it’s going to be close.”

The Bears certainly could use him.

Chicago (3-2) won its first two games without Williams, who hurt his right hamstring in a 9-3 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 20. Case Keenum led the Bears against Philadelphia, and Tyson Bagent took over for the victory against the New York Jets.

But the Bears’ offense looked dreadful Sunday without Williams, who orchestrated memorable come-from-behind victories over the Packers late in the regular season and again in a wild-card game last season. It didn’t help that the Bears also were missing running back Kyle Monangai due to thumb and toe injuries.

Bagent went 12 of 21 for 87 yards with two interceptions, both by Xavier McKinney. Keenum replaced Bagent with the Bears already trailing 31-7 early in the fourth quarter, and he went 11 of 19 for 108 yards while throwing one interception and losing a fumble on a strip sack. Each quarterback was sacked twice.

Johnson was asked after the game how he would handle his quarterback situation against Atlanta if Williams isn’t available.

“We’ll do the same thing we do every week,” he said. “We talk as a staff. We’ll recap this game. And we’ll make a decision next week what’s best for us.”

Chicago’s offense struggled in just about every respect Sunday.

The Bears entered with an NFL-leading 196.3 yards rushing per game, but they gained just 81 yards on 24 carries. D’Andre Swift ran for 43 yards and scored Chicago’s lone touchdown on fourth down from the 1 in the second quarter. He didn’t get much help without Monangai.

Keenum is confident the Bears will bounce back no matter who’s at quarterback.

“There’s a lot you find out about yourself in this part of the season, and you’re kind of becoming the team that you’re going to be,” said the 38-year-old Keenum, who came back for a 12th season after being out of football the past two years. “Your identity is getting forged sometimes through fire. And it was in the fire today. So, we’ll see what kind of identity we have coming out of the back end of this thing.”

See AP’s full NFL coverage here