Bears QB Caleb Williams Named NFC Offensive Player of the Week

It took Caleb Williams one game to add another accolade to his ongoing shelf of achievements. The Chicago Bears' quarterback was named the NFC's Offensive Player of the Week for his Week 6 performance in the 31-23 win over the Atlanta Falcons. 

Williams completed 30 of 36 passes for 305 passing yards and connected with tight end Colston Loveland for a 14-yard touchdown. He finished with a 83.3 completion % -- setting a new career high for the third-year QB. That mark is also the highest for a Bears quarterback with at least 30 passing attempts. 

When Williams completed the touchdown pass to Loveland, he joined an elite group of quarterbacks. Williams became the third quarterback to throw for 50 touchdowns before his 15th interception, joining Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes and Baltimore's Lamar Jackson. 

The Bears started the game with back-to-back touchdown drives, and Williams started off the game 12 of 12 for 142 yards and a touchdown. Despite missing the last three games because of a hamstring injury, the Bears' quarterback played efficient and on time, distributing the football to eight different pass catchers throughout the course of the game. 

Bears head coach Ben Johnson has appeared to take an approach from his Detroit Lions days and added it into the game plans this season. Williams has a 5.9 average depth of target (ADOT), which ranks last among quarterbacks with at least 53 dropbacks, according to Pro Football Focus. 

Last season, Williams finished with the 12th-highest ADOT at 8.9. Looking at Johnson's offenses in Detroit with quarterback Jared Goff, the two ranked towards the bottom half of the league in ADOT. 

(Here's a complete breakdown of Johnson's offense in Detroit vs. Chicago)

Now, just because Johnson has taken that approach with Williams, doesn't indicate he doesn't trust his quarterback to take shots downfield. Every game plan is based on the opponent. Williams has faced the Carolina Panthers, Minnesota Vikings and Atlanta Falcons. 

Those last two opponents are ranked in the top half of the league when it comes to pressuring the quarterback. Williams is executing Johnson's game plan the way the coach believes the team can secure a victory. That's an encouraging sign that Williams is continuing to take steps in mastering Johnson's offense now that he is in Year 2 with his head coach. 

This is Williams' second NFL Player of the Week Award. He earned that honor for his 298 passing yards and four touchdowns in the Bears' 31-14 win over the Dallas Cowboys in Week 3 last season.