The NFL Week 1 slate delivered plenty of excitement capped off by a Sunday Night Football thriller. However, the fun’s not yet over — on Monday night, the new-look Chicago Bears take on the Minnesota Vikings at Soldier Field. In this matchup Caleb Williams sees his first real opportunity to go to work under head coach Ben Johnson, but will this offense truly live up to expectations in the team’s regular-season opener on the national stage?
Here are the top Caleb Williams prop bets for Bears vs. Vikings on Monday Night Football to cap off the Week 1 slate.
Best Caleb Williams prop bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
The No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Caleb Williams brought plenty of hype with him to the Windy City. A former Heisman Trophy winner, it’s easy to see why expectations were high, and while he created plenty of highlight moments to the professional level as a rookie, there were also plenty of lowlights as well. He finished that rookie campaign with a 62.4% completion percentage, 3,541 yards, 20 touchdowns and just six interceptions. Limiting turnovers was a strong point and Williams showed flashes of a franchise quarterback, but he also led the NFL in sacks taken and didn’t always read the field well.
However, things feel different heading into his sophomore season. Chicago hired Ben Johnson, a scheme guru who turned the Detroit Lions’ offense into one of the best in football, as the Bears’ next head coach. The franchise also drafted tight end Colston Loveland with the No. 10 pick in the draft as well as wideout Luther Burden in the second round, adding talent to an offensive core which already included D.J. Moore and Rome Odunze. Perhaps most importantly, the Bears addressed the offensive line and added veteran talent to protect Williams. With the pieces in place, Williams feels positioned for a breakout second season.
Still, this Week 1 Monday Night Football showdown feels like a very tough spot for this revamped Bears roster. The Vikings ranked second in defensive EPA last season with a mark of -0.09 EPA per play against, and defensive coordinator Brian Flores emerged as a boogeyman of sorts where scheme is concerned. Safety Harrison Smith will miss tonight’s game due to an injury, but Minnesota maintains a fearsome front seven and should see their pash rush enter with the upper hand over the Bears’ offensive line.
On the flip side though, Williams actually played decent football in two contests against the Vikings last season. He completed 64.1% of his passes with an average of 265.5 yards per game, tossing three touchdowns with no interceptions. If the Chicago O-line can keep him upright and he doesn’t try to play hero ball, the improved weapons — and more importantly, coaching and scheme — position Williams to comfortably go over his line of 218.5 passing yards. That line feels a tad too low for this matchup, so I’m happy to target an alt line of 230+ passing yards for the second-year starter as he takes the national stage on Monday Night Football against a division rival.
