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Even going back to college, quarterback Caleb Williams has been a polarizing figure for some football fans. He has been made fun of for his nails, but most recently, the Chicago Bears star quarterback got some backlash over his hamstring injury.
In Week 2, Williams suffered his injury on his way to scoring a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings. He was clearly in pain and had to be taken to the locker room on a cart. The initial fear was that the injury was season-ending. But luckily for Chicago, he was only out for three weeks, and the Bears went 2-1 in those games with Case Keenum and Tyson Bagent.
After it was announced that Williams was week-to-week with his injury and would not be placed on injured reserve, there were accusations that he was being dramatic and comparing his reaction to other players who suffered hamstring injuries, such as wide receiver Davante Adams with the Los Angeles Rams, who went to IR with his hamstring injury. But Williams does not care what the outside perception is of him; he is focused on winning.
“People are going to say what they have to say. I can’t please everybody. That’s not my job,” Williams said. “My job is to go win games. My job is to be the best player I can be. My job is to believe in myself, trust in my teammates and go out there and be one of those guys on the field that makes game-changing plays. You like it, you don’t like it, you got to deal with it.”
In his three games back from his injury, Williams has had the best three-game stretch of his NFL career. The Bears are undefeated. He has thrown for over 200 yards in every game, including back-to-back 300-yard performances against the Atlanta Falcons and New England Patriots. Williams has also emerged as an MVP candidate, especially after how he picked apart of the Seattle Seahawks' defense.
Perhaps the mainstream perception of Williams is different, but he is the best quarterback for the city of Chicago and for the Bears. They will be looking for their seventh win of the season against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.