The Chicago Bears are about to make the most critical decision of the past decade. They hold the #1 pick for the second year in a row. Last season, they opted to pass on a quarterback in favor of trading the pick for a large haul of assets. That haul turned into D.J. Moore, Darnell Wright, Tyrique Stevenson, the #1 pick this year, and a 2nd in 2025. GM Ryan Poles has a chance to make that one of the all-time greatest trades in NFL history if he can hit on that #1 pick next month. Almost everybody believes he will use it on a quarterback, and Caleb Williams of USC is favored to be that quarterback.
Nobody disputes the young man’s talent. Many feel he is one of the best prospects to come out of college in the past several years. He’s right up there with Andrew Luck and Trevor Lawrence. Former Bears personnel director Josh Lucas agrees. From a talent perspective, there is Williams and a gap between everybody else. However, things change once the off-the-field and personality questions come into play. From what Lucas has heard from the scouting community, there are some things that terrify him about Williams.
He explained on the Hoge & Jahns podcast.
Getting inside Caleb Williams’ head is the top priority.
That is what Poles plans to do. The Bears already met with the quarterback during the scouting combine. It went well from all accounts. Yet the real action begins later this month. Williams holds his pro day at USC on March 20th. After that, the team will bring him in for a private visit. That is when the Bears can truly dig into the person and the competitor. Poles said it’s not just about finding a talented quarterback. He must find somebody with the mental fortitude to handle a pressure cooker like Chicago.
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Separating truth from fiction is the hardest part of this time of year. They don’t call it “lying season” for nothing. It is more than possible teams are putting out fake information in an effort to get Caleb Williams to drop. Such things happen every year, especially when quarterbacks are involved. Everybody remembers the baffling criticisms of Justin Fields having a poor work ethic in 2021. This could be the same thing. That is why it is vital for the Bears to get answers straight from the source.
Their findings will come to light in just over a month.
Should Poles decide Caleb is THE guy and takes him at #1, I won’t argue. However, if the Bears GM trades down to select another QB or player, then it is obvious that Caleb is either a difficult personality to follow, OR Poles will never be satisfied no matter how talented or commanding a presence the QB prospect.
Teams invest more than money into these selections. The future of the team’s success is at stake. GMs gotta find out if the prospect has character, perseverance, and the freaking drive to win. Talent alone doesn’t cut it.
Someone on NE sports radio put it a while back that being in the spotlight that long, they start picking apart everything about you.
Every GM knows his strengths and weaknesses at this time. They dug into his high school and college life. There are no surprises. Gonna come down to Poles and his team to make the decision
Meh it’s that way every year with the top pick Scooby. This year is louder because he has been this years top pick for 3 years. Once the move with JF takes place or an announcement is made there will be a mourning period for some, but they will move on quickly.
Sorry — I thought this was an NFL football-related site.
When did Erik Lambert sell Sports Mockery to “Tiger Beat Magazine?”