Ben Johnson’s first open OTA review came with specific checkpoints. He named the Bears’ cleaner huddle operation, faster pre-snap processing and Caleb Williams’ completion percentage as the early markers for Year 2 in the system.

Johnson said the Bears are off to a good start through their opening OTA practices and that the operation is smoother than a year ago, when new schemes were still being installed. He pointed to communication in the huddle, the break, the urgency to the line of scrimmage and the tempo Chicago wants to use to stress defenses.

Williams completed 58.1% of his passes last season, 32nd among 33 qualified passers and down from 62.5% as a rookie. His -6.9 completion percentage over expected was the worst in the NFL among players with 200 or more attempts. Johnson is tracking the numbers daily at OTAs and reinforced the point in the meeting room this week.

The context cuts both ways. PFF credited Bears pass-catchers with 34 drops of Williams’ throws, third-most in the league, and Chicago tied for the fourth-highest drop rate at 5.1%. Johnson put a number on the volume of misses: “We’ve probably got 80 to 100 completions left on the table. I think he’s going to recognize that.” Eighty more last season would have lifted him to roughly 72%.

Williams made quick decisions and accurate throws during Thursday’s practice. In the final 7-on-7, he hit Zavion Thomas on a left-sideline fade, Rome Odunze in a tight window and D’Andre Swift on a wheel route, throws that test touch, timing and the ability to punish a defense once the structure creates space.

New quarterbacks coach J.T. Barrett has framed the same idea more bluntly, asking Williams to “do less” and “take what the defense is giving.” Williams’ 3.20-second time to throw last season was second-longest in the league, behind only Shedeur Sanders.

Chicago returns Swift and Kyle Monangai, the only NFL teammates last season to both rush for at least 750 yards. Swift finished with 1,087 yards on 4.9 per carry, and Monangai added 783 as a seventh-round rookie.

That backfield keeps Williams out of constant long-yardage passing. A cleaner huddle, a credible run game and fewer drops turn Williams’ completion goal into a project the whole offense pushes toward, instead of a stat sitting on the quarterback alone.