Boomer Esiason's criticism of Bears QB Caleb Williams comes with an ironic twist

"When you think about this, I think a lot of these kids and their parents nowadays and the level of entitlement is breathtaking," Esiason said. "It's no wonder why he failed initially, and it's no wonder why the coach got fired. Now they (Bears) go out and get an offensive coach in Ben Johnson, and now it's on his ass. It's going to be on his ass to live up to these so-called lofty expectations that he has for himself and that his father has for his son.

"I understand that there could be a discussion that (Chicago) could be a place where quarterbacks go to die, but go fix it. Be the reason that the team is going to turn it around and be the player that you think you are."

Strong words, indeed. I mean, Esiason would never have taken a stance like this when he was a draft prospect, right?

Wrong.

The fantastic social media sleuths struck again on X, sharing an NFL Films video of Esiason and the 1984 NFL Draft, in which legendary NFL reporter Peter King shares a story about Esiason's stance on the Indianapolis Colts, who, on the eve of the draft, loaded up their moving truck and ditched Baltimore.

"Boomer Esiason, loyal terp that he was, said 'I don't care if they draft me, I'm never going to step foot on the field for the Indianapolis Colts,'" King said.

Well, well, well. Isn't that something, Boomer?

It's easy to criticize a young player and his family for trying to position themselves for the best chance of success, especially when your job now calls for hot takes behind a mic in the country's biggest media market. But, perhaps, a little perspective is warranted before crushing Caleb Williams.

Caleb Williams had every right to be hesitant about joining the Chicago Bears

First, Williams' pre-draft position was sensible. The Chicago Bears were fresh off ruining two first-round quarterbacks -- Mitch Trubisky and Justin Fields. There was no reason to believe the current structure would get it right with Caleb, no matter how talented he is.

Second, everyone except for GM Ryan Poles knew that Matt Eberflus was a dead man walking. He proved in 2023 that he wasn't qualified to be a head coach, and the fact that he was retained only acted to confirm any organizational concerns.

Third, the Bears' decision to hire Shane Waldron, whose former players struggled to find ways to praise him, would and should give any young quarterback pause.

And let's not forget a critical point in this whole saga: Williams eventually did come around to the idea of playing for the Chicago Bears. He did decide that he would be the guy to break the cycle of failed quarterbacks for the organization.

"I can do it for this team," Caleb told his dad, per ESPN. "I'm going to go to the Bears."

For Esiason to say Williams "failed" in his first season is odd, too. Williams ended the season with the fifth-highest single-season passing yardage in Bears history and set an NFL record for the most consecutive passes by a rookie without an interception. He also led Chicago on several should-have-been-winning drives, only to lose those games because of coaching malpractice.

But the most frustrating part of Esiason's attack on Williams is that he took a similar stance as a young quarterback coming out of Maryland. He refused to play for the Colts simply because he was offended and sad that they left Baltimore.

Maybe teams had concerns about Esiason's diva approach, and that's why he slid to the second round of his NFL Draft. And perhaps he's just a little bitter that Williams, despite taking the stance he took, was still the first overall pick.