In February, Caleb Williams sat just outside fantasy QB1 status as the QB14; however, he has since moved up to QB12 in both Underdog and Drafters’ best ball quarterback rankings. Williams is set up to make the jump this season with the hiring of Detroit Lions’ offensive coordinator Ben Johnson as his new head coach. We saw Jared Goff thrive under the Johnsons’ offensive tutelage. Goff‘s 4,629 yards passing were second in the NFL, and his 8.6 yards per attempt were a career-best. We are high on Williams’ outlook and see him taking his fantasy production up a notch in 2025.
Caleb Williams Fantasy Outlook: Expect a QB1 Finish
Fantasy Football Profile: Caleb Williams
2024 Year in Review
Caleb Williams finished last season as the overall QB16, posting 3,541 passing yards to go along with 20 touchdown passes to just six interceptions. He also added another 489 yards rushing and posted 254.5 fantasy points. What hurt Williams, in our opinion, was the lack of weekly consistency, as his 15.0 per game fantasy mark ranked just 20th among regular starting quarterbacks. On top of that, he lacked explosiveness in the passing game, ranking near the league bottom on throws of 20 yards or more. Williams was more of an underneath passer, ranking in the top 10 among fantasy quarterbacks in throws from 0-1o yards.
Besides the inability to complete the downfield throws, other factors led to the Williams’ disappointing fantasy season. Among 40 qualified fantasy quarterbacks, he was bottom six in yards per attempt, bottom 15 in highly accurate ball rate, and second worst catchable ball rate. All these were contributing factors in his ranking 21st in fantasy points per game among quarterbacks. However, Williams did provide a floor ranking seventh in rushing among quarterbacks, and top-12 in expected fantasy points per game.
2025 Projection
Fantasy Pros has Caleb Williams projected to score 279 fantasy points on 3,647 passing yards with 23 touchdown passes to 10 interceptions. On the ground, he is forecasted to rush for 462 yards and another two scores. The Chicago Bears have the offensive pieces in place. DJ Moore finished 2024 as a top 16 fantasy wide receiver, and D’Andre Swift was a top 19 running back. Rookie Rome Odunze showed flashes and finished third on the Bears in targets. Finally, tight end Cole Kmet is just one year removed from his 2023 overall TE8 finish. The Bears also added in this year’s draft, wide receiver Luther Burden and tight end Colston Loveland. Both are expected to contribute this season. Perhaps, most importantly, we believe the addition of new head coach Ben Johnson brings a massive upgrade to the entire Bears offense.
Caleb Williams Fantasy Football ADP
In consensus best ball rankings, Williams currently goes off draft boards as the QB11 and carries an ADP of 95.5. He represents a viable top-12 option in the later rounds of fantasy drafts. Williams possesses a higher upside for two reasons. The first being the aforementioned rushing prowess. Second, a proven track record of Ben Johnson to get his quarterback to push the ball down the field. One of the keys to drafting a successful fantasy quarterback is targeting mobile quarterbacks. Well, you got one right here and can get him in the middle of the eighth round.
Main Photo: [Jeff Hansich] – USA Today Sports
The post Caleb Williams Fantasy Outlook: Expect a QB1 Finish appeared first on Last Word on Pro Football.