Caleb Williams is the Chicago Bears’ beginning quarterback. Simply in case there was a shred of doubt that the No. 1 general draft decide is the crew’s No. 1 QB, coach Matt Eberflus erased it on Friday.
“No dialog. He is the starter,” he mentioned.
Eberflus’ remark was hardly a shock contemplating the Bears have been all in on Williams because the early phases of the draft course of. They made their intentions clear after they traded Justin Fields to Pittsburgh in March.
Chicago introduced in veteran quarterbacks Mike Glennon and Andy Dalton after they drafted Mitchell Trubisky and Justin Fields with excessive picks in recent times, pondering the rookies would watch from the sideline in a kind of redshirt season. The plan blew up in each instances, with Glennon getting benched for poor play and Dalton getting damage. However the Bears have been underneath a distinct regime on the time, with former basic supervisor Ryan Tempo and coach Matt Nagy.
The opposite quarterbacks at the moment on the Bears’ roster are Tyson Bagent and undrafted rookie Austin Reed.
Williams, the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner, is extensively considered as a generational expertise. The Bears are banking on him to change into the kind of franchise quarterback Chicago has craved for many years.
Williams appears to be embracing his new environment, whether or not he is sitting courtside at a Chicago Sky preseason sport, getting a rousing ovation at Wrigley Area or doing regular-guy stuff like buying at Goal.
“You need to discover steadiness inside all of this,” Williams mentioned Friday. “That is actually essential. After which the opposite a part of it, simply getting round. Going to Goal, that was for the entire installs and all of the small issues that I wanted. And I simply thought it was a humorous image, the best way I used to be strolling. It is all of it. All of it goes collectively to take pleasure in and discover a good steadiness, but in addition, in a way, get acclimated to the realm of the land and issues like that.”
Williams put up large numbers in faculty, with 93 landing passes and 14 interceptions throughout three seasons at Oklahoma and Southern California. He adopted coach Lincoln Riley from Norman to Los Angeles and threw for 72 TDs and simply 10 interceptions in two years with the Trojans.
The Bears have made simply three playoff appearances because the 2006 crew superior to the Tremendous Bowl. They’re 10-24 in two seasons underneath basic supervisor Ryan Poles and Eberflus. However they see themselves as a playoff contender after going from three wins in 2022 to ending 7-10 final season.
That largely hinges on Williams.
“You’ll be able to actually inform he is comfy in his personal pores and skin, and he’s who he’s,” Eberflus mentioned. “His character begins. His gentle comes out from the within. You’ll be able to definitely really feel that vitality. He is a one-plus-one-equals-three man. He is an enhancer. He is a man that brings out the perfect in folks. You’ll be able to definitely really feel that in him inside 5 minutes of assembly him.”
Caleb Williams formally named the Bears beginning QB
Williams acquired a little bit of a leg up in studying the fundamentals of offensive coordinator Shane Waldron’s system by means of his work with private QB coach Will Hewlett.
Williams checked all of the packing containers for Chicago in the course of the pre-draft course of. He has continued to make a great impression on the Bears since they drafted him, whether or not he is figuring out with teammates or taking in Cubs or Sky video games with them.
“The neighborhood has been rallying behind us, which we admire, and we glance to have the ability to pay that respect again with our on-the-field contributions,” mentioned receiver Rome Odunze, the No. 9 general decide. “It has been superior. Chicago has welcomed us with welcoming arms. We’re doing nicely.”
Odunze, an All-American at Washington, mentioned it is “exhausting to think about a greater scenario” attending to develop with a rookie quarterback. It would not damage him or Williams, both, that the Bears have two veteran playmaking receivers in DJ Moore and six-time Professional Bowler Keenan Allen.
“Proper now I am following all of the vets, I am following all of the coaches. I am listening, having each ears open and my mouth shut,” Williams mentioned. “Simply form of sitting again listening and once I get to the purpose of once I be taught every part, once I be taught the methods of how we do it with the tradition, the playbook, and what the offensive line, the receivers are all doing, operating backs and tight ends and issues like that — then you can begin taking the lead. Then you can begin taking the helms of all of it and take the following steps.”
Reporting by The Related Press.
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