Dave Portnoy bothered by Caleb Williams ‘spreading disinformation’ about him

Piling onto Caleb Williams in Monday’s episode of Wake Up Barstool on FS1, Dave Portnoy called the Chicago Bears quarterback a “thespian” for his appearance following a non-contact injury in a Week 2 loss.

“The man tweaked his hammy, and acted like both ACLs, MCLs, and everything else … what are we doing here?” Portnoy said.

While Williams’ injury looked nasty in the moment, The Ringer’s Tom Pelissero reported he could play as soon as Monday Night Football next week. And Portnoy was not the only one to tease Williams for playing up his exit at Soldier Field, where he tearfully pumped his fist to the Bears faithful as he rode toward the locker room on a cart.

The notoriously very online Williams went on a reposting spree on X after his injury and the backlash to his emotional exit. One of the posts Williams shared was from a user calling Portnoy out for his comments on Wake Up Barstool, which airs live from the Windy City.

“The guy that had a kid arrested and expelled from school for throwing pennies at him is calling someone else soft,” the user wrote.

Last year, a heckler interjected while Portnoy was recording a One Bite Pizza Review video in Starkville, Miss. The 20-year-old student shouted “f*ck the Jews” at Portnoy while throwing coins at him, playing on an antisemitic trope. The student was arrested and charged with disturbing the peace; he later paid his $2,500 bond and was released.

Given the context of the post Williams shared, Portnoy was driven to correct the record and clapped back early Tuesday.

“I woke up to Bears Qb [Caleb Williams] spreading disinformation about me,” he wrote on X. “I didn’t get anybody arrested or kicked outta school. That moron threw shit at me on camera in the middle of a pizza review, and it went viral. Play stupid games win stupid prizes.

“Regardless I will not hold this against Caleb. He’s an emotional guy and in his feelings after tweaking his hammy. I am rooting for him and all of Chicago. I can’t wait to see 18 back on the field this week after that season ending injury. When they go low I go high! Go Bears!”

I woke up to Bears Qb @CALEBcsw spreading disinformation about me. I didn’t get anybody arrested or kicked outta school. That moron threw shit at me on camera in the middle of a pizza review and it went viral. Play stupid games win stupid prizes

Regardless I will not hold… pic.twitter.com/N58DJTqcND

— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) September 22, 2026

The end of Portnoy’s post, of course, was in jest. Portnoy rarely takes the high road, as anyone even mildly aware of him would know. But Portnoy has been quite vocal in combating what he sees as a “definitive shift” toward growing antisemitic sentiment in America in recent years.

It is entirely understandable that the Barstool founder would, in this case, want to set the record straight on the heinous behavior he faced last year.