Behind the mental game Chicago Bears QB Caleb Williams plays during the 8-game losing streak

LAKE FOREST, Ill. - Caleb Williams is aware of how it all sounds. He even admitted it at the Halas Hall podium on Wednesday.

"This is gonna sound crazy," Williams said.

One of the best ways for the Chicago Bears quarterback to fight off those thoughts is by talking to himself.

"You talk to yourself to be honest, like you motivate yourself," Williams said. "You encourage yourself, you have positive affirmations."

Staying positive in the middle of an eight-game losing streak is easier said than done.

Williams, drafted as the quarterback who can finally end the Bears', at best, dubious history with quarterbacks, is trying to keep his head up. His first year in the NFL has come with a learning curve, but he's also shown why he's regarded as such a talented quarterback.

Still, the Bears have not won a game since October.

"It's one of those things that actually really affects me," Williams said. "It's tough, but I do have the understanding of where I'm at my career and where I'll be at. So having that understandment is important for myself internally, because internally is tough."

Williams' rookie season has not been a disappointment. He already has some of the numbers to show for it.

Williams is on pace to throw for 3,566 yards in his rookie season. That would land him at fifth all-time in the Bears' single-season passing record book sandwiched between Jay Cutler's 2015 and 2010 seasons.

Williams is averaging 1.2 touchdown passes per game, putting him on target to throw 21 touchdowns in the 2024 season. That ties him at 11th all-time on the Bears' single-season touchdown passing list.

If Williams doesn't throw another interception this season, he'll finish the season with just five thrown interceptions. Only five other quarterbacks with a minimum of 100 passing attempts have thrown just five interceptions in a season. 

Still, his rookie year is defined by the Bears' 4-10 record where the franchise fired its head coach midseason and struggled after an offseason of promise.

None of this is lost on Williams, who only lost 10 games total as a college quarterback.

"One of the biggest things is not pulling yourself down and being gracious with yourself," Williams said.

Although, it's hard to be in that mental shape all the time. Other younger quarterbacks have suffered from trying to do too much with the football and end up either turning the ball over or getting injured. 

It's also easier to fall into bad habits when negative plays pile up. Williams has been sacked more times in a single season than any other Bears quarterback in franchise history. Williams is adamant that's not affecting him.

"Every player is different," Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown said. "I do believe him when he says that he doesn't ‘see ghosts’.

Still, from what the coaching staff has seen from Williams and his preparation, there's no worry about him falling into those habits.

"Not with him I don't," Brown said.

One of the hardest things is how Williams will always be compared to the likes of Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye and Bo Nix, who were selected one, two and 11 picks after Williams.

Nix and Daniels are on teams that have a good chance of making the playoffs. Williams' Bears were mathematically eliminated last Sunday when the Commanders beat the New Orleans Saints.

Williams is tied with Daniels for second in touchdown passes among rookies. Nix leads all rookie quarterbacks with 20 touchdown passes. While WIlliams is last among the four with a 61.9 completion percentage, he's also thrown the fewest number of interceptions.

Those stats are moot. Although quarterback wins are not a stat accurately attributed to a quarterback – considering a quarterback can't play defense or block for themselves – Daniels and Nix have both won nine games as rookies.

There's not much Williams can do aside from say in the present.

He does have a notebook where he takes notes on things he wants to fix in the near future, like recognizing defenses, understanding different defensive fronts, anticipating different receiver routes, his foot work and more.

Though, he's never trying to look too far down the road.

"There are things that, at times, I will go to my notes and write things down that I know I want to work on or know I want to get better at," Williams said. "I want to get better at stuff that I want to learn. And obviously, finding ways to still be in the moment, stay in the moment, but understand that I got to grow and progress."