Let’s get this taken care of off the top.

I am not out on Caleb Williams and don’t think he’s a bust. Not even close.

I wanted the Bears to take Williams in 2024 and remain excited to see what the future holds, especially now that Ben Johnson is his coach.

I don’t wonder what the offense would look like with Tyson Bagent.

While I do check to see how Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye, and Bo Nix are producing, I am not simply comparing Caleb to them. Everyone peaks on different timelines, and I’m more interested in the long game.

Now that we got that out of the way, as the legendary Paul Harvey would say, “it’s time for the rest of the story.”

It’s okay to say it, Bears fans.

Caleb Williams has to be better.

He needs to be better. Much better, and now.

Saying this doesn’t make you less of a Bears fan. Ignoring these signs just makes you a fan of ostriches since you’re burying your head in the sand.

The biggest issue I’ve had with Williams is the same problem Justin Fields had here – he just isn’t seeing the field properly.

On the interception last week, Caleb didn’t realize that Rome Odunze was double-covered. Then, an hour later at the podium, he still believed it was the right read. Johnson bluntly explained that Williams should’ve taken the check down to Kyle Monangai in the flat. If Caleb still doesn’t understand this after the game, how can we expect him to figure it out in three seconds? This has to get better.

I am shocked by Williams’ lack of accuracy and low completion percentage. I always believed this would be his strong suit as he’s a natural-born quarterback. Instead, Caleb makes the hard throws look simple and the simple throws look hard. As Joe Maddon used to say, Williams must do simple better.

The intentional grounding penalties, knowing when to run out of bounds, the ever-evolving cadence issues and redzone struggles need to be fixed immediately if the Bears have any shot to make the postseason.

None of this is harsh; it’s just reality.

Caleb himself proclaimed his performance is “not good enough to win in the later months” and “I’m hurting the team more than helping the team.”

Williams’ development isn’t just about him. He holds the keys to unlocking rookies Colston Loveland and Luther Burden. The duo is averaging just over 40 yards receiving per game combined and has scored just once.

We knew the Ravens would be a desperate team. We knew that the defenses’ takeaways would eventually slow down. And we also knew Baltimore would score a lot of points against an injury-plagued secondary, even with Ty Huntley. Instead of rising to the challenge, the Bears’ offense could only muster a season low 16 points.

On deck, the Bengals – who just allowed 39 points to a winless Jets team with a QB who was torched by the team owner. Williams has to be able to do that as well.

Don’t get me wrong, Williams has been far from awful. He has taken fewer sacks than last year and has increased his explosive plays. There is tangible growth.

Yet, just like we ask the rest of the Bears players to clean up their penalty mess, it’s fair to ask Caleb to hold up his end of the bargain.

We ask because we know that Williams is immensely talented. That talent has to start leading to production.

• Marc Silverman shares his opinions on the Bears weekly for Shaw Local. Tune in and listen to the “Waddle & Silvy” show weekdays from 2 to 6 p.m. on ESPN 1000.