There was a lot of debate among Chicago Bears fans and the media during the early stages of the off-season. Many wanted to keep Justin Fields. He’d shown significant progress down the stretch of last season. Teammates seemed to love him. Better to trade the #1 overall pick for another mountain of assets and let Fields keep growing. GM Ryan Poles didn’t see it that way. What Fields had produced on the field was better, but that didn’t mean it was good enough. While he was a quarterback the Bears could win with, Poles felt Caleb Williams could be one they win because of.
So, the decision was made to make a change. Fields was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a conditional 6th round pick. A month later, Williams heard his name called on draft night. Poles seemed calm and confident about his decision. There might be growing pains along the way, but the Bears felt this decision was the right one for the organization. Adam Hoge of CHGO has covered Williams throughout the early practices in OTAs and mandatory minicamps. He saw enough to give him confidence of saying one thing is certain.
The rookie is already as good of a passer as Fields was at the end of last season, if not better.
People already knew the USC star could move around and make crazy plays on the run. The Bears defense is finding out he is far more than that. T.J. Edwards admitted Williams already got them by using his eyes to manipulate coverage. He’s followed up mistakes with big plays. He’s learning faster than anybody expected. It isn’t like the Bears are coddling him, either. They’ve opened the entire playbook to him and are regularly throwing disguised coverages and blitzes at him. He never seems overwhelmed.
If Fields had played the entire season last year, he would’ve finished with 3,350 yards and 20 touchdown passes. That appears to be Caleb Williams’ floor this season. It would be by far the best year a Bears rookie quarterback has ever produced. The fact it took Fields three years to reach that point should tell you how far along Williams is as a passer. This isn’t a long-term project. He is ready to go right now. The Bears have put a great supporting cast around him, too.
