A wildly successful season for the Chicago Bears is coming to a crashing halt. Going 11-6 to win the vaunted NFC North, the team was hosting a home playoff game against their sworn rivals, the Green Bay Packers, and potentially ushering in a new era of success with the Caleb Williams-Ben Johnson combination.
However, their Wild Card round matchup may have gone about as badly as it possibly could have. Falling behind 21-3, it seemed like the Bears had virtually no answers for them. But in the second half, as they tried to mount a comeback, they suffered a fatal blow in the form of a potential injury to their quarterback.
What Happened to Caleb Williams?
After a rookie year that could only be described as disappointing, Williams took a major step up this season. Becoming more efficient and prolific as a passer, he led the NFL with six fourth-quarter comeback drives.
On their first drive of the second half, Chicago got their only other points of the night, so far, adding another three to the tally. Facing a third down, they tried to get the ball to Colston Loveland, but the ball fell short.
#Bears QB Caleb Williams tripped and turned his ankle. Something to watch: pic.twitter.com/8dnWHhyvbV
— Arye Pulli (@AryePulliNFL) January 11, 2026
Unfortunately, on the play, Williams came away with an injury to his ankle due to an unintentional collision with the Packers’ Barryn Sorrell. With his right ankle clearly getting twisted, the former first overall pick immediately fell to the ground in pain.
He returned to the game on the next drive, but the announcing crew made it clear that he was being closely monitored. In case he had to step out again, the Bears would have to rely on Tyson Bagent as the backup quarterback.
Unfortunately, even as he came back into the game, a rough outing continued for the second-year star. It looked like he’d found a second gear after the injury, but it came to a screeching halt as he threw his second interception on a fourth-down conversion in the red zone, effectively ending any chance at a Bears comeback.
Completing just 13 of his 25 passing attempts, he had 171 passing yards to his tally, but had thrown two costly interceptions that made it nearly impossible for Chicago to remain viable in the contest.
Editor’s Note: This is a breaking news story and will be updated throughout the day as more information becomes available.
