Super Bowl champion may have foreseen Caleb Williams' early struggles

Caleb Williams was considered the top prospect in the 2024 NFL Draft, but a Super Bowl champion wasn't wild about the Chicago Bears quarterback. 

In a story published Tuesday, The Athletic's Jon Greenberg shared excerpts from Seth Wickersham's new book, "American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback," set to release Sept. 9. He also interviewed the ESPN writer via a phone conversation. 

Citing a section of Wickersham's book, Greenberg noted Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton scouted Williams, despite the team not being in a position to take him. The process left him with concerns. 

Before the 2017 draft, Payton developed a formula to help calculate processing speed for QB prospects, a critical factor in NFL success. Unlike fellow second-year QB Bo Nix — whom the Broncos selected with pick No. 12 in 2024 — Williams scored poorly.

Payton also felt the 2024 No. 1 pick left "too many completions on the field at USC," per Wickersham.

Other coaches share similar sentiments about the former Southern California Trojans star. 

On Monday, The Athletic's Mike Sando released his annual QB tiers. The tiers are numbered one through five, with one being the best and five being the worst. Williams landed in Tier 3.  

A head coach told Sando that Williams' processing looked "alarming" when watching the tape. An offensive coordinator said the 23-year-old often holds the ball far too long, consequently taking too many sacks. 

During his rookie season, Williams took the most sacks (68 in 17 starts) in the NFL. To cut the 2022 Heisman winner slack, his offensive line was shaky. According to Pro Football Reference, the unit ranked sixth in the NFL in pressures allowed (160).   

After firing Matt Eberflus, the Bears hired former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson as head coach. His marriage with the young QB seems to be off to a rocky start. Williams has reportedly looked inaccurate during training camp. 

Williams still has time to get the hang of his new playbook before the regular season starts in September. However, if his problems persist in year two, that would validate Payton's doubts about the QB.