Shane Waldron Says One Game Sold Him On Caleb Williams

It was a surprise when Shane Waldron chose the Chicago Bears as his next destination to coach this off-season. The former Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator was in high demand across the NFL, and many teams were hoping to hire him. That Bears closed the deal meant GM Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus must have made a terrific sales pitch. Others believe the explanation was far simpler than that. Waldron wanted the opportunity to work with Caleb Williams, the presumptive #1 pick in the draft.

Remember, Waldron has worked on the West Coast for most of his NFL career. He likely saw plenty of USC games over the past two seasons, so it is a fair assumption he'd been aware of Williams for some time. While the talent was more than enough to impress almost any coach, Waldron admitted there were other factors that drew his attention. One game in particular stuck out to him. Surprisingly, it wasn't one most people would expect.

It was the last game of Williams' college career.

“The way that he finished the UCLA game in a way that he stayed competing no matter what the outcome was going to be, he made some good throws, throws on the move to finish the game out there. To me, you see the competitor, the championship mindset where he’s going to be at his best, no matter the situation around him, and keep playing.”

“Everyone is good in the NFL. Every week, you’re playing against great people on defense, great schemes, and so that ability, regardless of what’s going on with the external noise or the situation in a game, play every play as its own individual snap. He demonstrated that. Take away all the highlight reels. That was a good moment.”

Shane Waldron values a never-say-die attitude.

This was a trait of Williams from the moment he stepped on the field in college. His first action was coming off the bench, trailing 28-7 against Texas. He led Oklahoma on a furious comeback to win 55-48. The UCLA game didn't feature any miracles, but it still showcased his competitive fire. By the start of the 4th quarter, USC was down 31-13. The Bruins then scored again to make it 38-13. There was zero point in Williams playing any further. The game was over and the season was over. He'd already been sacked four times and harassed all day. The sensible thing would've been to preserve his body by sitting the rest of the way.

Instead, Williams went back onto the field and engineered an 11-play drive that featured a massive 4th and 14 conversion to set up a touchdown. It was the last drive of his college run. Rather fitting. Resilience is such an underrated quality in a quarterback. Shane Waldron understands this. You need it if you're going to survive in the NFL. The coach saw it with Russell Wilson and Geno Smith in Seattle. He saw it with Jared Goff in Los Angeles. He knew what to look for with Williams and made sure to jump on the train when the opportunity arrived.