The Chicago Bears are betting the future of their franchise on former USC QB Caleb Williams — who they selected with the first overall pick in April’s NFL Draft — to replace Justin Fields, who was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Caleb Williams became the University of Southern California’s eighth Heisman winner when he was announced as the recipient of the 88th Heisman Memorial Trophy following a sophomore season in which he also won the Maxwell and Walter Camp Awards and the 2022 AP Player of the Year honor.
The 6-foot-1 Williams, who transferred to USC as a sophomore, threw for 4,075 yards on 296-of-448 passing (66.1%) with a national co-leading 37 touchdown passes against just four interceptions. His passing yards was fourth-most nationally, his quarterback rating (167.94) was fifth-best and his passing yards per game (313.5) were sixth-best.
The Chicago Bears are hoping Williams will be the franchise QB the organization has been seeking since they had their last playoff win in 2010 when they beat the Seattle Seahawks.
Williams, from Washington D.C., was ranked as the nation’s No. 1 player by SI All-American as a 2020 senior quarterback at Gonzaga College High in Washington, D.C., though they did not play a fall 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Williams enrolled at Oklahoma in the spring of 2021 after graduating a semester early from high school and became the Sooners’ starting quarterback by mid-season. Overall in 2021 while appearing in 11 games and starting the last seven, he completed 136-of-211 passes (64.5%) for 1,912 yards and 21 TDs with 4 interceptions, running for 442 yards on 79 carries with 6 TDs.
He transferred to USC as a sophomore, following Head Coach Lincoln Riley who took over the Trojans in 2022 after his time in Norman, Okla. Williams won the Trojans’ quarterback job and led USC to an 11-2 season after the Trojans went 4-8 in 2021.
Williams and the Trojans took a step back in 2023 but his stat sheet still shined. He threw for 3,633 yards, 30 touchdowns and five interceptions.
The Chicago Bears have set up Williams for instant success and are banking on him hitting the ground running with success during his rookie season. They extended speedy WR DJ Moore who is coming off his best pro season with 1,364 yards and 8 touchdowns. They added Keenan Allen from the Chargers who has earned 6 Pro Bowl selections since coming into the NFL in 2013.
Finally, Chicago added former Washington WR Rome Oduze with the No. 9 overall pick in April’s NFL Draft to give Williams yet another weapon. The Bears also added DeAndre Swift as a dynamic runner in the backfield who can also make plays as a pass-catcher and they are hoping tight end Cole Kmet will continue to thrive after a solid rookie campaign.
The Bears had a slow start on offense in Saturday’s preseason game, which was Williams’ Soldier Field debut. They went three-and-out three times in the first quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals. They got a field goal to start the second quarter, though that was due mostly to a defensive pass interference penalty downfield. It looked like a quiet follow-up to an impressive preseason debut for Williams.
Then Williams had a pass that got Chicago Bears fans buzzing, and a touchdown run that displayed his athleticism.
Just before the two-minute warning, Williams scrambled to his left, contorted his body and made an impressive throw to fellow rookie Rome Odunze for a 45-yard gain. Bears fans can get used to plays like this.
Caleb finds Rome on the run 🔥
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A really nice throw by Williams to the end zone as he rolled right after escaping the rush would have been another highlight, but Odunze’s feet were out of bounds when he caught it. Williams made up for it.
On third-and-goal, Williams kept escaping the rush, got to his left and found a lane to the end zone for a touchdown run. His day wasn’t perfect but those two plays were reminders why Williams was the first overall pick of the NFL Draft.
Caleb the Magician 🪄
📺: #CINvsCHI on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/tuMxB7giTX— NFL (@NFL) August 17, 2024
While it’s only preseason, the Chicago Bears should feel good about their first round pick adjusting to the NFL.
