{"id":710466,"date":"2026-06-02T13:50:33","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T13:50:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/710466\/"},"modified":"2026-06-02T13:50:33","modified_gmt":"2026-06-02T13:50:33","slug":"nfl-analyst-explains-why-bears-qb-caleb-williams-will-win-mvp-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/710466\/","title":{"rendered":"NFL analyst explains why Bears QB Caleb Williams will win MVP in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>There are high expectations for <a href=\"https:\/\/bearswire.usatoday.com\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Chicago Bears;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Chicago Bears&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Chicago Bears<\/a> quarterback <a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/sports.yahoo.com\/nfl\/players\/40900\/\" data-i13n=\"sec:content-canvas;subsec:anchor_text;elm:context_link\" data-ylk=\"slk:Caleb Williams;sec:content-canvas;subsec:anchor_text;elm:context_link;itc:0\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Caleb Williams&quot;,&quot;ySubModuleName&quot;:&quot;anchor_text&quot;,&quot;yHasCommerce&quot;:false}\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Caleb Williams<\/a> heading into his third season, where he&#8217;s poised to establish himself as the long-term answer for the franchise and set himself up for a massive payday at season&#8217;s end.<\/p>\n<p>Williams is coming off a breakout season where he emerged as one of the league&#8217;s most clutch quarterbacks leading an NFL-record seven fourth-quarter comebacks, including a wild-card win over <a class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/sports.yahoo.com\/nfl\/teams\/green-bay\/\" data-i13n=\"sec:content-canvas;subsec:anchor_text;elm:context_link\" data-ylk=\"slk:the Green Bay Packers;sec:content-canvas;subsec:anchor_text;elm:context_link;itc:0\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;the Green Bay Packers&quot;,&quot;ySubModuleName&quot;:&quot;anchor_text&quot;,&quot;yHasCommerce&quot;:false}\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">the Green Bay Packers<\/a>. Williams also set the franchise single-season passing record (3,942 yards) and fell just shy of becoming the <a href=\"https:\/\/sportsdata.usatoday.com\/football\/nfl\/teams\/chicago-bears\/326\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Bears;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Bears&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Bears<\/a>&#8216; first 4,000-yard passer. He made some of the NFL&#8217;s best throws of the season with his pure playmaking ability. And that was all in just Year 1 with head coach and offensive guru Ben Johnson.<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p>While Williams wasn&#8217;t among the top 10 favorites for MVP among a group of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/nfl\/story\/_\/id\/48894110\/2026-nfl-season-100-days-nuggets-mvp-predictions-fantasy-rookies\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:ESPN analysts;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;ESPN analysts&quot;}\" class=\"link \">ESPN analysts<\/a>, Matt Bowen did make a bold prediction that the former No. 1 pick will in fact win the MVP award.<\/p>\n<p>1 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 1: at Carolina Panthers, Sunday, Sept. 13, 1 p.m. ET <\/p>\n<p> (Michael Reaves, Getty Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/9cbe6cc317065a54767f9bcc5986a24f.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>1 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 1: at Carolina Panthers, Sunday, Sept. 13, 1 p.m. ET <\/p>\n<p> (Michael Reaves, Getty Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1c864f803a129ab1e350a7e5d69887a7.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>2 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 2: vs. Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Sept. 20, 1 p.m. ET <\/p>\n<p> (Michael Reaves, Getty Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/576413d9f182eda76ba6791110e34a70.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>3 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 3: vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Monday, Sept. 28, 8:05 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (Bill Streicher, Bill Streicher-Imagn Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1fc1e0d6b46d976a86bc91dc247990ee.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>4 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 4: vs. New York Jets, Sunday, Oct. 4, 1 p.m. ET <\/p>\n<p> (Jim McIsaac, Getty Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/741e775b7632192258b8f98e5ec2e048.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>5 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 5: at Green Bay Packers, Sunday, Oct. 11, 4:25 p.m. ET <\/p>\n<p> (Jeff Hanisch, Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/631493e3ced0c800cf69674d4b1cf865.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>6 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons, Sunday, Oct. 18, 1 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (Jamie Sabau, Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/e1865ae61a26b8ce761dcdceddda2e87.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>7 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 7: vs. New England Patriots, Thursday, Oct. 22, 8:15 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (Imagn Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/102f77aace7d0d6a2ec9174ee1385318.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>8 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 8: at Seattle Seahawks, Monday, Nov. 1, 8:05 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (Quinn Harris, Getty Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/bfa94843ecd10963935fc5297ac20f71.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>9 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 9: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Sunday, Nov. 8, 8:15 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/dbdcbc2474027f3551dea0c52f49d351.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>10 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule (Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/fa3c7de5e30e68bc729abc0dc4777912.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>11 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 11: vs. New Orleans Saints, Sunday, Nov. 22, 1 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (David Banks, David Banks-Imagn Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ab92cc7ceb06253d9a2126f896760a81.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>12 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 12: at Detroit Lions, Thursday, Nov. 26, 1 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (Junfu Han, Junfu Han \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/78386db7eaefb7f3c31dbe5fb1cd3e9c.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>13 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 13: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars, Sunday, Dec. 6, 1 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (Richard Heathcote, Getty Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/b8c5d5c1ceed403533a4c6cc71955dcb.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>14 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 14: at Miami Dolphins, Sunday, Dec. 13, 1 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (Justin Casterline, Getty Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/20980ed96c05b13cc76117f91fbc4440.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>15 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 15: at Buffalo Bills, Saturday, Dec. 19, 8:20 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (David Banks, David Banks-Imagn Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ce948c85a973d0eabcb5c1569a1e109d.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>16 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 16: vs. Green Bay Packers, Friday, Dec. 25, 1 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (Michael Reaves, Getty Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/a70580f91aaa43fc9157319f66aa64a4.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>17 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>Chicago Bears 2026 schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 17: vs. Detroit Lions, Sunday, Jan. 3, 4:25 p.m. ET<\/p>\n<p> (Matt Marton, Matt Marton-Imagn Images)<img alt=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"fill\" class=\"cropped-img\" style=\"position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/83955891cdc00437b98c11b75c75f58b.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>18 \/ 18<\/p>\n<p>8 things to know about the 2026 Bears schedule<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin: 0px;\">Week 18: at Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Jan. 10, Time TBA<\/p>\n<p> (Ellen Schmidt, Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p>Williams threw for 3,942 yards and 27 touchdowns in 2025, his first season under coach Ben Johnson. With another offseason to develop in Johnson&#8217;s system, the Bears QB is primed to play at a high level in 2026. Plus, he has a versatile and explosive group of pass catchers. The arrow is pointing up on Williams &#8212; and Johnson&#8217;s playcalling.<\/p>\n<p>While Williams was one of the most exciting parts about the NFL last season, the crazy thing is he hasn&#8217;t even neared the ceiling of his potential. This second season with Johnson should be a turning point for the young quarterback as he gets more comfortable in the offense and perfects his short passing game to complement his insane deep-ball and off-platform ability.<\/p>\n<p>Will that equate to an MVP award this season? Who&#8217;s to say, but there&#8217;s no denying that Williams certainly has it in him to be the NFL&#8217;s best. We&#8217;ll see if Johnson can get him there.<\/p>\n<p>Follow Bears Wire on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TheBearsWire\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Twitter;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Twitter&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Twitter<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TheBearsWire\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Facebook;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Facebook&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Facebook<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/bearswireusat\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Instagram;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Instagram&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Instagram<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p>This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: <a href=\"https:\/\/bearswire.usatoday.com\/story\/sports\/nfl\/bears\/2026\/06\/02\/bears-caleb-williams-mvp-dark-horse\/90366794007\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Bears QB Caleb Williams dubbed MVP dark horse in 2026;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Bears QB Caleb Williams dubbed MVP dark horse in 2026&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Bears QB Caleb Williams dubbed MVP dark horse in 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There are high expectations for Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams heading into his third season, where he&#8217;s poised&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":710467,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[559],"tags":[64,63,22816,1268,1248,593,85,109265],"class_list":["post-710466","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nfl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-ben-johnson","tag-caleb-williams","tag-chicago-bears","tag-nfl","tag-sports","tag-the-green-bay-packers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/710466","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=710466"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/710466\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/710467"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=710466"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=710466"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=710466"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}