One thing that has stood out about Caleb Williams is that he’s surprisingly chill about the media criticism he receives. Some quarterbacks might bristle at some of the things said about them. Williams has heard a vast blend of different critiques during his football career. He holds the ball too long and is too obsessed with big plays. He’s not a great leader because he has terrible body language. He paints his nails and has a unique fashion sense, which means he’s a sissy. Williams has heard it all and isn’t bothered by it. He understands that comes with being a high-profile athlete who’s enjoyed lots of personal success.
It’s all noise to him. However, there is one exception. Williams admitted to Jason Lieser of the Chicago Sun-Times that one criticism thrown around has gotten under his skin on more than one occasion. It’s this idea that he doesn’t work hard.
Williams admitted, however, there is one part that gets to him. When people get so caught up in his stature, effervescence and eccentricities, they don’t take him seriously.
It fuels a misconception that he’s more concerned about being famous than great, that he’s not fully committed. Few insults could strike deeper than that for someone who used to get up at 4 a.m. to work out as a kid and sees his ambitious goals on the home screen of his phone every time he picks it up.
‘‘I’ve been serious since I was 9,’’ Williams said, sharpening his tone. ‘‘People get distracted by some of those things, and they think that the work was not put in over a consistent amount of time. . . . That gets lost.’’
He added that ‘‘hard work is everything.’’
It is one thing to have your life choices questioned, but you cannot do anything about it. People differ and will say such things. However, acting like they know you personally and the time you put in is an egregious insult. Williams has sacrificed so much of his youth to reach this point. Having ignorant people act like they know anything about that is ridiculous.
Caleb Williams is out to prove something this season.
Nobody inside Halas Hall has once questioned his work ethic. Head coach Ben Johnson and GM Ryan Poles have praised him at every turn. Even teammates get a bit testy when such questions come up. Caleb Williams is plenty of things, but lazy is not one of them. He puts in as much or more time than anybody. It was never and should never be about his desire to be great.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
One thing about Williams is that he has a maniacal competitive streak. He keeps close track of the doubters, both in the media and among fans. Every time they throw shade, he files it away for later. There’s been enough this offseason to fill an entire file cabinet. It has felt like the quarterback is getting better rapidly in training camp. Almost as if he’s out to prove something. Doubt him at your own risk.
