Quarterback stability has been one of the swing factors during Ben Johnson’s first season and a half with the Chicago Bears, and right now that stability is in question. When Bears QB Caleb Williams came out to face the Minnesota Vikings on September 20, 2026, he suffered an injury. Three days out, and as it seems, Johnson has yet to lay out a clear plan for how the Bears will handle their quarterback room going forward.

“We’re at a point right now, not sure who the starter’s going to be on Monday night,” Johnson told the media on Wednesday, Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic wrote on X. “We’ll let this thing play out. Case [Keenum] is the one that’s practicing today.”

Keenum is a veteran of the game, and last started for the Houston Texans in 2023. If he logs snaps this weekend, he’ll have played for his eighth team. Notably, Keenum didn’t manage any touchdowns in that game against the Cleveland Browns. He also threw two interceptions and will want to do better in Williams’ absence.

During the fourth quarter of the Chicago Bears’ 3–9 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, Caleb Williams pulled up with a non-contact injury while scrambling toward the goal line on a wet Soldier Field turf.

He seemed visibly emotional and had to be carted off the field with a towel over his head, sparking initial fears of a season-ending knee or Achilles tear. However, an MRI on Monday confirmed that Williams avoided a major muscle tear or structural damage. Because it is a Grade 1 strain (where muscle fibers remain intact), he will not require surgery.

Head coach Ben Johnson classified Caleb Williams as week-to-week. As things stand, the Bears have not mathematically ruled him out for their upcoming Monday Night Football game against the Philadelphia Eagles on September 28. However, coach Johnson admitted Williams is highly unlikely to practice this week.

“It sounds like it’s gonna be a week-to-week deal for him,” Johnson said on Monday. “I gotta still talk with our trainer here, we’ll do that here shortly, and I’ll have the lowdown from him, but it sounds like it’s week-to-week but will likely miss some time.”

Caleb Williams kicked off the 2026 season by throwing for 269 yards while posting two passing and rushing touchdowns each, and played a crucial role in the Chicago Bears’ 59-37 win against the Carolina Panthers. Meanwhile, up until his injury in the Week 2 game, Williams completed 15-of-26 passes for 138 yards under his name.

But for the Week 3 game, with Caleb Williams sidelined by a Grade 1 hamstring strain and backup Tyson Bagent in the NFL’s concussion protocol, the Bears’ depth chart is completely hollowed out ahead of their Monday Night Football clash.

As a result, 38-year-old veteran third-string quarterback Case Keenum, who has 15,175 passing yards and 79 touchdowns in 80 regular-season games, is currently taking first-team reps and is in line to be the starter.

However, as for Caleb Williams, HC Ben Johnson is quite happy that his franchise quarterback didn’t suffer any major injury that could impact the Bears’ 2026 campaign.

“Yeah, potentially [dodged a bullet],” Johnson further said on Monday. “We’ll see. He’s tough and he comes back from these types of things better than the average human, so we’ll see.”

But till, Williams fully recovers, Johnson & Co. will potentially have to depend on their QB3, Case Keenum.