You could've forgiven Chicago Bears fans if they thought their team's season was already over on Sunday evening. Heck, some thought the seemingly bright future they had was also in jeopardy.
After star quarterback Caleb Williams went down in a heap halfway through the fourth quarter of a loss to the Minnesota Vikings, many assumed the worst. Even if Williams had avoided a career-altering injury, the presumption was that his hamstring injury would force the Bears signal-caller to miss roughly two months of action. Fortunately, that won't be the case. The Bears, Williams, and their fans can rest easy because his injury prognosis is far from the complete disaster that was initially feared.
On Monday, Tom Pelissero reported that Williams avoided a major
hamstring injury and will not, in fact, even be ruled out for Chicago's upcoming Monday night home game with the Philadelphia Eagles. After how Williams' injury looked, this is incredible news for the Bears and football-obsessed Chicagoans everywhere:
Bears QB Caleb Williams avoided any major injury to his hamstring Sunday, tests confirmed today — and the team isn’t even ruling him out for next Monday’s game against the Eagles, sources tell @ringer @netflixsports.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 21, 2026
A massive sigh of relief in Chicago. pic.twitter.com/mfCT5x0JWR
Of course, this report doesn't mean Williams didn't get injured. A likely Grade 1 hamstring strain isn't considered major, hence the verbiage, but it is still a strain of delicate soft tissue. And I would doubt any language that asserts Williams plays a professional football game just one week after said soft-tissue injury; that feels like gamesmanship on the Bears' part. It would be reckless on the Bears as an organization to rush their franchise player back to the field so quickly after getting hurt.
Bears head coach Ben Johnson himself poured water on the idea that Williams would play next week, characterizing his status as more week-to-week than anything else:
Bears HC Ben Johnson told @ESPN1000 that he expects QB Caleb Williams to be “week to week” with the hamstring injury that he suffered Sunday. Williams underwent an MRI this morning. pic.twitter.com/t8pryZXBKy
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 21, 2026
Still, again, all of this discussion is a lot more encouraging than what we thought might initially happen with Williams. Everyone thought this was the kind of injury that would mar most of his third season in the NFL and tank what should have been a second straight promising season in Chicago. Instead, Williams will likely miss a game or two, and the Bears' ambitious plans with him at the forefront should be right back on track when he returns.
Who is Caleb Williams' backup on the Bears?
Tyson Bagent will fill in for Williams while he recovers. Bagent is a former undrafted free agent out of 2023 who steadily worked his way up to become the backup quarterback in Chicago.
When might Caleb Williams return to the Bears' lineup?
I wouldn't expect Williams to play against the Eagles this coming Monday night. But if his recovery goes well, I could see him playing against the New York Jets at home in Week 4. That would give him roughly two weeks of rest and rehabilitation, assuming his injury is as mild as described. If that doesn't happen, a road date with the Green Bay Packers in Week 5, which is three weeks away, feels like the safest bet for Williams' return at this point in time.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Caleb Williams, Bears get the best-case scenario with his hamstring injury
