Let's face it. The media always gets carried away during draft season. Every top prospect is a future star. This guy is the next Hall of Famer. That guy will win Rookie of the Year. It is part of what makes the draft so exhausting and compelling at the same time. In times like this, it can be refreshing to hear what people inside the league think of certain prospects. Are they that good, or is the hype out of control? Few people have more lines to the inner sanctum of the NFL than Adam Schefter of ESPN. He sat down to speak with Jacob Infante of Windy City Gridiron about the looming Chicago Bears draft. The hot topic was, of course, Caleb Williams.
Everybody expects the USC star to be the #1 overall pick, leading fans to wonder how good the kid is. Is GM Ryan Poles making the right decision by choosing him over the other options? Schefter has spoken to several people around the league about the young quarterback. From what he's gathered, Williams is not media-made. The kid is legit. He has a level of ability that is ultra-rare for that position. It's such that many see him as maybe the best prospect the league has seen in over ten years.
Yes, really.
Assuming the Bears do select Williams, it would hardly come as a surprise. Schefter stated that scouting circles view the 2022 Heisman Trophy in an incredibly high light — perhaps higher than any quarterback to enter the NFL in the last decade.
“When Trevor Lawrence entered the NFL, they said he was the best quarterback prospect since Andrew Luck,” Schefter explained. “Now, I’ve heard that Caleb Williams is the best quarterback prospect since Andrew Luck, which would make him better than Trevor Lawrence, or any other quarterback that’s entered the NFL in the last decade or so. Again, that’s great; that’s super going into the draft. It still matters what you do once you enter the NFL. You could be the best quarterback prospect since Sid Luckman, and it doesn’t matter if you wash out, right? It doesn’t mean anything. It’s great. All it means is that Caleb Williams has got a boatload of potential, and it’s up to him to try to make sure that he fulfills that.”
What makes Caleb Williams unique is he's not the prototype.
Most NFL gatekeepers will say the best quarterbacks always follow the same formula: big, rocket arm, and good in the pocket. It's true such types often have success. Andrew Luck and Trevor Lawrence are good examples. That said, there is no one correct way to play the position in this league. Williams may not have the frame at 6'1, 218 lbs, but he's got so many other traits that stand out. He's highly mobile, has a gift for sensing and avoiding pressure, gets the ball out fast, and is pinpoint accurate both from the pocket and on the run. He's drawn comparisons to both Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers.
The key for the Bears is to do everything possible to help Caleb Williams thrive. One reason Luck and Lawrence didn't or haven't reached their potential is that their respective organizations failed to build around them. Luck never had good offensive lines, resulting in hellacious beatings that wore his body out by age 29. Lawrence has been haunted by coaching turmoil and subpar supporting casts. Thankfully, the Bears seem to have built a stable foundation on offense with good receivers, tight ends, an offensive line, and a coaching staff.
If Williams is as good as they say, he should be able to find success in this setup.
