Caleb Williams went down against the Minnesota Vikings, which was much more concerning than the Chicago Bears’ Week 2 loss. The quarterback was carted off in tears after suffering a non-contact injury. But as the quarterback crying and fist-bumping drew sympathy from some, Emmanuel Acho questioned his actions.

Acho argued that the tears and fist bump carried significant meaning in the NFL, comparing the moment to players who suffered season-ending or career-ending surgeries like Dak Prescott and Jayden Reed. His comments quickly sparked discussions over whether Williams had overreacted to his injury.

The Las Vegas Raiders star Maxx Crosby stepped in to shut down the criticism himself. Crosby suggested that nobody from the outside can truly understand what was going through the QB’s mind when his hamstring suddenly gave out. He treated the reaction as something normal and emotional rather than a breach of some unwritten NFL rule.

“So, Caleb, obviously we sent our wishes, hopefully everything’s smooth, um, and it’s nothing serious, but everyone, you know, has an opinion about ‘Oh, why do you react this way to this certain type of thing?’ He might never hold a hammy in his life, and nobody knows. You know what? I mean?” said Maxx Crosby on The Rush With Maxx podcast.

The Bears’ QB went down without contact while scrambling, with the concern that the injury could involve his knee or something more severe. HC Ben Johnson later confirmed that Williams had avoided a knee injury, while further evaluation revealed a Grade 1 hamstring strain.

The first few minutes were full of uncertainty for Williams. Crosby, who has dealt with a hamstring issue himself, explained why that uncertainty can be frightening for a player.

“I’ve had one hammy thing a while back, and like, that s— would freak you the f—- out when it first happens, you know what I mean? In his head, you could probably imagine, like, oh, s—, like, something really bad just happened, and you have all these emotions and things going on.”

The diagnosis may have been encouraging, but Williams did not know what had happened to him while he was lying on the field. And that immediate fear naturally triggered an emotional response.

Crosby made it clear that he did not mean to dismiss the seriousness of the moment. Instead, he offered support to the young quarterback while acknowledging how unpredictable injuries can be.

“..So, you know, it’s part of the game. That’s how it is. But we at the rush, you know, we uh send love to Caleb and you know, we know he’ll bounce back,” Maxx added.

The head coach expects Williams to miss some time. But the situation got messy in Chicago when backup Tyson Bagent was revealed to be dealing with a concussion of his own. If both the QBs are not ready for Monday Night Football, veteran Case Keenum will be playing as the starting QB against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Crosby’s message shifts the focus from judging Williams’ tears to understanding the uncertainty behind them. Williams cannot be rushed on the field and is expected to return at least by Week 5, when Chicago will travel to Lambeau Field for a matchup against the Green Bay Packers.