Former QB Uses Caleb Williams To Take A Dig At Justin Fields

The Chicago Bears faced a tough decision at the end of the 2023 season. Justin Fields had shown some improvement as a passer down the stretch. Under normal circumstances, he would've gotten another year as the starter. However, the Bears had also secured the #1 overall pick thanks to the bold trade with Carolina the previous off-season. GM Ryan Poles knew Fields' contract and his lack of upper-echelon processing made the decision clear. Chicago traded Fields to Pittsburgh before pivoting to Caleb Williams in the draft.

By all accounting, the divorce was amicable. Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus thanked Fields for his toughness, leadership, and effort over the past two years. Fields thanked them for being up front and sending him to a team he wanted to play for. That hasn't stopped other people from continuing to pile on about his failures. Former quarterback Chris Simms is one of them. He released his QB power rankings going into the 2024 season. Not only does he have Fields ranked a distant 25th on the list, but he rubbed salt in the wound by putting Williams at #20.

The Caleb Williams over Justin Fields stance isn't a hot take to him.

Simms has a reputation for making outlandish statements about quarterbacks. He famously had Lamar Jackson as his #1 QB going into the 2018 draft. However, he also had Kellen Mond among the top names in the 2021 class. The truth is he's never been a fan of Fields, even going back to his time at Ohio State. While Simms acknowledges the exceptional athlete the 25-year-old is, he has a fatal flaw that continues haunting him. Until he fixes it, he'll never realize his full potential.

“You get into it, and you see that, and you start to go, ‘This is awesome when you see it on ESPN or the NBC Sports highlights. Yeah, these are cool to watch.’ But then you start to break down the game and you go, ‘Oh man, he missed this throw,’ or ‘He should’ve thrown it, but he didn’t throw it.’”

Simms' opinion of Williams couldn't be more different.

He sees an ultra-rare prospect with a unique blend of athletic playmaking instincts and the ability to handle processing before and after the snap. It won't take him long to start stacking good performances in the NFL.

“I look at him as being a natural, being a ‘Chosen One’ type of guy. He’s been in an offense in his college career where it was on his shoulders and he was asked to read the field and check and do things at the line of scrimmage.

“He’s very mature for a quarterback, as far as the play is concerned.”

“His physical talent is extraordinary. Extraordinary. I also think he has the mentality and the maturity to handle Chicago and handle the new offensive situation."

While it's not nice hearing Fields getting more criticism, hearing your new quarterback get showered with praise by somebody who played in the league is never a bad thing. Simms has been around the NFL since he was born. His father is a two-time Super Bowl champion. Football runs in his blood. If he says Caleb Williams is special, it might be good to listen.