Former Coach Says Bears Are Downplaying Caleb Williams' Actual Progress

Caleb Williams will be the focal point for the Chicago Bears and national media moving forward. That comes with the territory of being a #1 overall pick. This means every update involving him will command lots of attention. The Bears hit the Organized Team Activities (OTAs) portion of the off-season last month. It didn't start well for Williams, who had a rough outing against the defense during the first practice open to the media. That inevitably led to panic among some Bears fans. Thankfully, he got some revenge during the second one on Friday, throwing only one incompletion in 7-on-7s and engineering a game-winning drive in the two-minute drill.

Head coach Matt Eberflus has said he's satisfied with Williams' progress, especially with his footwork inside the pocket. However, there is still much work to do. One person who thinks such a statement isn't quite connected to reality is Dave Wannstedt. The former Bears head coach told NBC Sports Chicago that he believes the team is intentionally downplaying the actual progress Williams has made. This is because they don't want to let people's hopes get out of control. The team would rather undersell and overdeliver than the opposite.

From everything he's heard, the quarterback is acclimating fast.

Caleb Williams isn't known for his patience.

When he was a freshman at Oklahoma, he made it clear immediately that he was gunning for the starting job. It didn't matter that Spencer Rattler was the anticipated choice. There was no "waiting his turn" in his mind. Sure enough, when Rattler got benched against Texas, Williams was ready. That mindset has never let him. This is a ferocious competitor who holds himself to a high standard. He wants to be great and won't waste a single second working to reach that goal. His progress won't be a surprise to those who know him.

The Bears won't complain. At the same time, they know how dangerous hype can be. If they pump out constant clips of him practicing well, people will get carried away. This is why they've only released three clips of him throwing passes. It whets the appetite of fans while allowing them to control the narrative of his development. The truth will be out soon enough. There's no sense in letting things get carried away until then. HBO will take care of that when August rolls around.