USC quarterback Caleb Williams is seen as the consensus No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft if he declares. However, according to Williams’ father, there is no guarantee that anyone will get the chance to pick him next April.
Carl Williams said in a GQ profile about Caleb that there are definite concerns about the quarterback possibly landing with a bad organization, and it could lead to Caleb returning to school if that sort of organization lands the No. 1 pick.
“The funky thing about the NFL Draft process is, he’d almost be better off not being drafted than being drafted first. The system is completely backwards,” Carl Williams told Sam Schube of GQ. “The way the system is constructed, you go to the worst possible situation. The worst possible team, the worst organization in the league — because of their desire for parity — gets the first pick. So it’s the gift and the curse. I mean, I’ve talked to Archie Manning — his career was shot because he went to a horrible organization. I’ve talked to Lincoln [Riley], and Kyler [Murray] struggled because of where he was drafted. Baker [Mayfield] struggled mightily because of where he was drafted. The organizations matter.
“He’s got two shots at the apple. So if there’s not a good situation, the truth is, he can come back to school.”
Putting aside Williams’ comments about the draft process, there are certainly risks. Williams could get hurt if he comes back for his senior season, potentially costing him millions of dollars. There is also no guarantee that the team picking first in 2025 would end up being better for Williams, at least in his estimation, than the one that lands the top pick in 2024.
Williams has franchise quarterback potential and could turn an organization around. He certainly thinks he is capable of that. At some point, he will have to bet on himself to be able to do it, regardless of who might wind up selecting him.
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