The Chicago Bears appeared to reach their decision at quarterback around March of this year, once their evaluations were done and they’d met with Caleb Williams. However, with Jayden Daniels off to a historic start in Washington, some can’t help but wonder if the Bears made the same mistake they did with Mitch Trubisky in 2017. They became too infatuated with one quarterback and didn’t do their due diligence in evaluating the other top options in the class. Is this Patrick Mahomes all over again?
Jayden Daniels W1 - LONG Hori - Raptive
Head coach Matt Eberflus was asked about this in advance of the Bears’ visit to Washington for a big-time matchup with the Commanders. Did they evaluate Daniels thoroughly and were they high on him? Eberflus set the record straight.
“Yeah, no question. He is a talent, a big talent as you can see that in the first part of the games. He’s got a real good future ahead of him. You can certainly see how he reads the field, how he sees, his vision, his anticipation, his accuracy, his ability to escape when he needs to, his ability to do the QB runs if they ask him to do that, athleticism. He’s a big talent.”
Jayden Daniels had some key red flags that likely scared Bears away.
Chief among them was his body type. Though an incredible athlete with speed for days, he also has a thinner build. That led many to wonder if he could hold up to the types of hits he would experience in the NFL. Injuries dotted his college career. Quarterback availability has been a constant issue for the Bears going back years. Only three times since 1990 has somebody started a full season for them. Justin Fields endured plenty of injuries across his three years, and Poles and Eberflus probably didn’t want to experience more of that with Jayden Daniels. The fact the #2 pick is already dealing with a rib injury reinforces that sentiment. Given how Williams has played lately, there is zero regret with the decision.
Chicago may not even see the NFL’s newest darling next week. If not, the Bears are in a premium position to upset Washington on the road and get to 5-2. One can imagine Williams would regret not being able to prove himself against his new rival.
