Chicago Bears QB Caleb Williams Prospects And Number Saga.
The Bears are about to try something new — winning with a high-wire, explosive offense littered with potential All-Pro pass catchers and a high-ceiling quarterback. Third-year general manager Ryan Poles pounded home his commitment to that direction in the first round of the NFL draft.
After selecting USC’s Caleb Williams with the first overall pick, as had been widely expected, Poles scooped up Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze with the ninth pick. He joins DJ Moore and Keenan Allen to give Williams a trio of outside targets who combined to catch 296 passes for 4247 yards and 28 touchdowns last season.
This is hardly business as usual for the Bears, who are the only NFL franchise that has never had a quarterback pass for 4,000 yards or 30 touchdowns in a season. But Poles was the Kansas City director of college scouting in 2017, when the Chiefs selected Patrick Mahomes to run Andy Reid’s offense.
ESPN commentator Booger McFarland said Thursday that Williams is “the closest thing we’ve seen to Patrick Mahomes since Patrick Mahomes.
Williams was a three-year starter at quarterback in college — one year at Oklahoma before following head coach Lincoln Riley to USC. He won the Heisman Trophy in 2022 and in his two seasons at USC produced 8694 yards and 93 touchdowns. He threw 72 touchdown passes with only 10 interceptions.