Bears QB Caleb Williams Feels Communication Growing with Garrett Bradbury

Garrett Bradbury is the starting center of the Chicago Bears. That position comes with plenty of responsibility in head coach Ben Johnson's offense. 

Bradbury, 31, gets to make a lot of calls, something the veteran loves about the game. He described his role as "getting the keys to the car." Right now, Bradbury is helping drive the Bears' offense, setting the O-line, tight ends and running backs all on the same page in the run and pass game. 

Johnson described Bradbury as "extremely sharp" and a "phenomenal communicator" with his loud and decisive voice on Tuesday. The Bears' center shared how he is feeling being in the middle of the Bears' offense.

"So, I relish it. I love it," Bradbury said. "I think it's fun to play in, and that's where the film study and all the meetings and the coaches preparing you for certain looks, it just all comes together, so I've enjoyed it."

He's also enjoyed working with quarterback Caleb Williams. This is Bradbury's first year on the team after six seasons in Minnesota and one in New England. Williams is on his third center since being drafted No. 1 overall in 2024. It hasn't been a completely flawless transition, but the two are continuing to grow their connection on and off the field. 

“Communication has gone well," Williams said. "We've gotten a lot better over these past couple days. The first couple days we were rolling, kind of like Coach said, and then we had a couple of off days where communication may have been a little off or cadence and things like that. I think these past couple days we've gotten better with it, just being more conscious of some of those small mistakes that show up and that happen. We've gotten better, and that's my guy. We're excited to go into battle together. Yesterday we ended up having a team event. It was bowling, and he was right next to me. We were competing throughout that, laughing and joking. I've been able to connect off the field and on the field. We've had stuff, OTAs and things like that, that we've had that he's been able to show up to and be around, and we've been able to hang out together.”

Bradbury tried talking smack to Williams during bowling, unaware that his quarterback could bowl a 190, a score that the Bears' center couldn't reach. Stepping off the field gave Bradbury a new perspective on Williams, though the competitive mentality matched the intensity of a late-game two-minute drive. 

"Yeah, I think you see competitive fire, fieriness to him," Bradbury said. "Like, he wants to win. He wants to get it done. I mean, even just bowling yesterday, like, he's not taking no for an answer. He's not taking a loss. And so you see through success and failure in those two minutes, he wants it. And so it's all of our jobs to get it done. And there's no there's no defeat, you're either learning or you're winning. So I feel like even though sometimes the defense gets the better (of a play), he still wants it. And so it's been fun to go to war with a guy like that."