The 2024 NFL Draft's worst kept secret is no longer a secret. The Chicago Bears have drafted former Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams with the first overall pick.
This decision has been widely expected for months since the Bears made the decision to part ways with former first round pick Justin Fields, paving the way for Williams to immediately take over as the franchise quarterback in Chicago.
Williams for years has been viewed as one of the best quarterback prospects in recent memory coming into the NFL and it finally feels like the Bears have made the right decision at the most important position in football.
"He's a really intelligent guy, came across as a really good teammate, easy to talk to and down to earth," Bears general manager Ryan Poles said ahead of the draft about his first overall pick. "He’s all ball, wants to work, wants to get better, wants to win as a team. That’s the No. 1 thing for him on top of being successful. I think the biggest thing is: Does he fit in our culture and what we’re trying to do. And all signs were that he does, so that was positive."
Not only will the Bears be miles better as a franchise with Williams as the team's starting quarterback, but Williams will also be entering into THE best situation a player drafted first overall has even walked into during their rookie season.
The Bears have completely overhauled their offense this offseason setting the unit up for success before Williams even walks in the door. The additions in terms of pure weapons such as Keenan Allen, Gerald Everett, and D'Andre Swift and the added fortifications up-front have already answered all of the concerns shown last season.
Beyond the players on the field, the Bears new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron is set to be a perfect fit for Williams play style. Waldron's modern pass-heavy offense will allow Williams to hit the ground running in the NFL and play free as a passer.
Having a pass-heavy offense focused on Williams skillset will be an incredible change of pace for the Bears that have primarily found their offensive success on the ground over the last two seasons. Now, the offense will become more spread out allowing Williams to sling the ball all over the field, including taking more shots downfield.
During the last two seasons in college, Williams accounted for more plays of 20-plus yards (134) and 50-plus yards (20) than any other college player according to Dane Brugler of The Athletic. The other major upgrade with Williams taking over at quarterback is his level of success on critical downs. Per Brugler, Williams didn’t throw an interception on third or fourth down during his time at USC on 199 pass attempts.
"What makes him special is his poise and mobility to masterfully buy time and create second -chance plays, although he tends to be overconfident in his ability to find answers among the chaos. Overall, Williams needs to be more consistent working on-schedule from the pocket, but you live with the hiccups because the positives are special with his dynamic passing skills and instinctive ability to create. Though stylistically he is like a really impressive karaoke-style version of Patrick Mahomes, he is truly unique as a playmaker." - Dane Brugler
The Bears had a very unconventional process leading up to selecting Williams with the first overall pick that made things more personal between the two sides. The Bears only brought in one quarterback for a 30 visit, Williams. And Williams only had one 30 visit with a specific team, the Bears.
On top of that, Williams sat down with many of the team's leaders in the locker room during his visit, in a separate room from the executives and coaches, to already establish a relationship with his new teammates. Poles mentioned before the draft that he wanted everyone involved in this process, including the players before making his decision with the top pick.
"We're in a really good place with our culture and our locker room. As much as I can I want those guys to be a part of the process of building this team," Poles explained. "I trust their feedback and I think that chemistry is really important."
Keeping the locker room intact and the chemistry together as a team was a major concern going into this decision to make the change at quarterback and as hard of a decision as it was, it seems like the Bears ultimately went in the right direction.
Leading up to the draft, Williams stated his expectation is to stay with the team that drafts him for years to come in hopes of winning multiple championships and chasing Tom Brady's success in the league, a expectation also shared by Poles.
"I think we all should have huge goals," Poles said. "We have huge goals here to win multiple championships and that's what we shoot for. You're more intentional when you have these goals. You have to live a certain way, you have to practice certain way, you have to go about your business a certain way in order to accomplish those. If everything else is aligned underneath that, that gets me excited."
We are truly seeing the start of a new era on the horizon for the Chicago Bears at this moment with Williams officially becoming the team's next franchise quarterback.
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