Bears chairman preaches patience with Caleb Williams: ‘He’s going to make mistakes’

Yes, the Chicago Bears expect big things from No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams. But team chairman George McCaskey wants Bears fans to have realistic expectations when it comes to Williams’ rookie season. 

It’s safe to say that optimism hasn’t been this high in Chicago in quite some time. A lot of that optimism is because of the arrival of Williams, whose presence both on and off he field has received rave reviews in recent weeks. McCaskey is also optimistic; he just wants fans to remember that Williams is still a rookie, after all. 

“Typically, the No. 1 pick in the draft comes into a situation where it’s going to take a while for things to come together,” McCaskey told the Chicago Sun-Times, via NFL Media. “Caleb’s got a lot of support — a solid defense, good receivers, good offensive line, a good running game, tight ends. But I hope people will be patient. There are going to be growing pains. He’s going to make mistakes. That’s part of the learning process for any young quarterback.”

Anyone who watched Williams this preseason saw a young quarterback who looked anything but. Specifically, the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner has impressive poise under pressure; he made several plays that were the byproduct of his athleticism, anticipation and football IQ. 

An example of this occurred during the first drive of his preseason debut, when Williams — under heavy duress — found a way to slip the ball out to running back D’Andre Swift, who then took off downfield for a 42-yard gain. Williams also used the pump fake as a weapon during the preseason, especially on rollouts. 

Williams looked the part of a No. 1 overall pick, but, as McCaskey alluded to, he is still a rookie who will go through the inevitable growing pains that come with his position. For every rookie first-round pick who enjoyed immediate success (see Ben Roethlisberger), there are many more (Terry Bradshaw, John Elway, Peyton Manning, etc.) who endured more downs than ups as rookies before embarking on Hall of Fame careers. 

The benefit for Williams is that he is on a team that is better than most who owned the previous year’s No. 1 overall pick. That should be a huge benefit for Williams, who headlines a starting rookie quarterback class that also includes Denver’s Bo Nix and Washington’s Jayden Daniels.