LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) — Chicago Bears coach Ben Johnson set a high bar for quarterback Caleb Williams as the two began their first training camp together Tuesday at Halas Hall.
It could be the key to how well the Bears bounce back in Johnson's first season from a 5-12 record and last year’s firing of former coach Matt Eberflus.
“We certainly have goals that we strive for, it’s not a secret,” said Johnson, the former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator. “I told him I would love for him this season to complete 70% of his balls.
“So, you would like to think that over the course of practice that we’re completing 70% or more or that’s hard to just magically arise in a game. It’s a lofty goal but it’s one we’re going to strive for because of that we’re going to use that as a benchmark and kind of work from there.”
The Bears have done a lot to help Williams improve from a QB who completed 62.5% to one with more consistency. GM Ryan Poles added guards Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson, and center Drew Dalman, to avoid last season's 68-sack debacle.
“Obviously I have self-goals,” Williams said. “That’s being the first 4,000-yard passer in Bears history. That’s a goal of mine. Seventy percent completion, that helps the team keep on the field, puts us in better positions.
“And then other than that just trying to go down and score the most points that we can with each drive that we have. That’s kind of my self-goal and obviously other than that you’ve got to go win.”
Whether the mix is there for last season's last-ranked offense to improve is the question. Johnson hasn’t been a head coach before and Williams hasn’t had pro success yet.
Even though it’s revamped, the offensive line may take time coming together because left tackle Braxton Jones hasn’t practiced all offseason. However, when the team reported for camp Tuesday he was deemed fit for practice after rehabbing from ankle surgery.
Now it will be a three-way competition for the starting spot between Jones, rookie Ozzy Trapilo and second-year tackle Kiran Amegadjie. Johnson gives no favors to the incumbent.
“I would like to think his experience will help him but we’re coming in with blank slates right now,” Johnson said. “And so just because a guy has played and another guy hasn’t in this league. We’re going to let the competition play out and we’ll see where it goes.”
Johnson called it a case where Jones does need some time to “ramp up” after being away all offseason.
“Every play matters, it all is going to matter as we go through this thing,” Johnson said. “And so I can’t tell you I’ve been through a three-man race before and so each play is going to be evaluated and they got to take full advantage of each opportunity that they get.”
Rookie receiver Luther Burden III and first-round pick tight end Colston Loveland, both recovering from injuries at OTAs and training camp, will also be ready for Wednesday’s first practice.
The only starter in question is cornerback Jaylon Johnson, who has a leg injury he suffered while training on his own, and is now on the non-football injury list for now.
The Bears gave Poles a contract extension before training camp so that he and Johnson both have deals running to 2029. They’re expecting progress to come much sooner.
“The focus for us is going to be on continuous improvement, all right?” Johnson said. “Really, for the next six weeks that’s all we care about is getting a little bit better every single day, day by day, brick by brick and that starts today.”
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FILE - Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams looks to throw during NFL football practice at Halas Hall in Lake Forest, Ill., June 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)
FILE - Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson watches players during NFL football practice at Halas Hall in Lake Forest, Ill., June 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)
BEIJING (AP) — Breaking with the United States, Canada has agreed to cut its 100% tariff on Chinese electric cars in return for lower tariffs on Canadian farm products, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday.
Carney made the announcement after two days of meetings with Chinese leaders. He said there would be an initial cap of 49,000 vehicles on Chinese EV exports to Canada, growing to 70,000 over five years. China will reduce its tariff on canola seeds, a major Canadian export, from about 84% to about 15%, he told reporters.
“It has been a historic and productive two days,” Carney said, speaking outside against the backdrop of a traditional pavilion and a frozen pond at a Beijing park. “We have to understand the differences between Canada and other countries, and focus our efforts to work together where we’re aligned.”
Earlier Friday, he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping pledged to improve relations between their two nations after years of acrimony.
Xi told Carney in a meeting at the Great Hall of the People that he is willing to continue working to improve ties, noting that talks have been underway on restoring and restarting cooperation since the two held an initial meeting in October on the sidelines of a regional economic conference in South Korea.
“It can be said that our meeting last year opened a new chapter in turning China–Canada relations toward improvement,” China's top leader said.
Carney, the first Canadian prime minister to visit China in eight years, said better relations would help improve a global governance system that he described as “under great strain.”
He called for a new relationship “adapted to new global realities” and cooperation in agriculture, energy and finance.
Those new realities reflect in large part the so-called America-first approach of U.S. President Donald Trump. The tariffs he has imposed have hit both the Canadian and Chinese economies. Carney, who has met with several leading Chinese companies in Beijing, said ahead of his trip that his government is focused on building an economy less reliant on the U.S. at what he called “a time of global trade disruption.”
A Canadian business owner in China called Carney's visit game-changing, saying it re-establishes dialogue, respect and a framework between the two nations.
“These three things we didn’t have,” said Jacob Cooke, the CEO of WPIC Marketing + Technologies, which helps exporters navigate the Chinese market. “The parties were not talking for years.”
Canada had followed the U.S. in putting tariffs of 100% on EVs from China and 25% on steel and aluminum under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Carney’s predecessor.
China responded by imposing duties of 100% on Canadian canola oil and meal and 25% on pork and seafood. It added a 75.8% tariff on canola seeds last August. Collectively, the import taxes effectively closed the Chinese market to Canadian canola, an industry group has said. Overall, China's imports from Canada fell 10.4% last year to $41.7 billion, according to Chinese trade data.
China is hoping Trump’s pressure tactics on allies such as Canada will drive them to pursue a foreign policy that is less aligned with the United States. The U.S. president has suggested Canada could become America's 51st state.
Carney departs China on Saturday and visits Qatar on Sunday before attending the annual gathering of the World Economic Forum in Switzerland next week. He will meet business leaders and investors in Qatar to promote trade and investment, his office said.
Associated Press business writer Chan Ho-him in Hong Kong contributed to this report.
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, speaks to the media at Ritan Park in Beijing, China, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, leaves after speaking to the media at Ritan Park in Beijing, China, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Chinese President Xi Jinping, centre, reacts during a meeting with Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney (not in the picture), at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian, Pool)
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, speaks to the media at Ritan Park in Beijing, China, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, center, arrives to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian, Pool)
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, shakes hands with China's President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)
