While it's hard enough to carve out a long and noteworthy career in the NFL regardless of the position you play or where you were drafted, there's a special fraternity of quarterbacks who were selected first overall who were immediately thrust into that spotlight, with the oldest in the NFL being Los Angeles Rams starter Matthew Stafford and the youngest being 2024 first overall pick Caleb Williams, who looks to take the Bears to the promised land for the first time since, well, forever.
So how does it feel to go from one of the hot young guns earmarked to become the new face of the NFL – potential he ultimately made good on – to a veteran pro who has been in the game so long the next generation of stars like Williams look up to him?
Asked about comments from Williams earlier this month, where he named him the second-best quarterback in the NFL during his Thursday media availability session, Stafford admitted it's humbling but noted that he had similar moments earlier in his career and he's excited to do the same for youngsters like Williams.
“It's humbling. I remember being in their shoes thinking the same thing about [Hall of Fame QB] Brett Favre and [Hall of Fame QB] Peyton Manning when I got to go against those guys at the beginning of my career. I'm not putting myself in that same breath, but the older guys. It was a really cool experience,” Matt Stafford told reporters.
“I'll never forget playing Brett when he was in Minnesota, and I was in Detroit, and he came up to me and was like, ‘Hey man, I'm a big fan.' I'm like, ‘You can't say that to me, right? I'm the fan of you. I've been watching you play for forever.’ So it is cool. It's humbling that these guys are paying attention and as big of fans as they might be of me, I wish nothing but the best for those guys. This position is hard. It's humbling. It's difficult. There are ups [and] there are downs. Guys that play this position for a long time know you have to stick together and pull for each other so I'm pulling for those guys.”
With the Rams set to go head-to-head against the Bears in Williams' first professional game against one of the teams that play right up the road from his former USC home, it's safe to say fans in Los Angeles will be keeping a close eye on Week 4 of the regular season, especially if Chicago comes out to a strong start. While Stafford still has a few good seasons left in him – football gods willing – it's safe to say he will turn from a competitor to a fan when his career eventually comes to an end.
Caleb Williams holds Matthew Stafford in high regard
Speaking of Williams celebrating Stafford as one of his favorite quarterbacks, the Bears' new QB1 discussed the “best” quarterbacks in the NFL in an appearance on Up & Adams and let it be known that other than Aaron Rodgers, his favorite signal caller, the Rams' franchise player is the cream of the crop.
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“I mean, he's unbelievable. Like, there's a couple plays where he'll go play action … he has the (linebacker) on a string, like he wants the backer to go here, and he'll throw it right behind his head (with) the perfect touch, perfect velocity,” Stafford told Adams via CBS Sports. “I was not happy. I don't think I can name two quarterbacks, two, three quarterbacks that play the position better than Matthew Stafford.”
Asked about Josh Allen, the premier NFL quarterback under 30 in the eyes of many a fan – besides, of course, Patrick Mahomes – Williams stuck to his guns, noting that he wouldn't take anyone but Rodgers in 2024.
“Matthew Stafford is Matthew Stafford,” Williams responded. “Aaron Rodgers — right now in the game — is my No. 1 QB… Matthew is top-two in the league. I give him his respect.”
Alright, did Williams choose not to mention Mahomes since he has been getting compared to the KC QB since his early days at USC, so much so that some fans will call him a bust if he isn't a top-3 QB right out of the gate? Maybe yes, maybe no, but much like Stafford grew up watching Farve, the Mannings, and Tom Brady, Williams grew up watching Stafford and Rodgers, and as the duo prepares to call it a career before the end of the decade, maybe he just wants to give them their flowers while he can?
