Many quarterbacks have tried to reverse the Chicago Bears’ fortunes at the position. Some came close. Jim McMahon won a Super Bowl, though he never escaped criticisms of being injury-prone and lackadaisical in his conditioning. Erik Kramer had a tremendous year in 1995 but never found consistency after that. Jay Cutler was the most gifted thrower of a football the organization has ever employed. Sadly, he never seemed to have the mind or leadership qualities to reach the upper tier. Caleb Williams is the latest to challenge this persistent curse that has haunted the franchise for decades.
Nobody disputes his talent. Arm strength, accuracy, and mobility are all key parts of his skill set. He also demonstrates good pocket awareness and terrific improvisational instincts. However, it will take more than that to reach the top of the NFL. Williams isn’t arrogant enough to believe he’s already there. Instead, the rookie explained to Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune why he believes he can get there. It isn’t about his natural ability. It stems from his maniacal pursuit of perfection.
No. I’m not overanalytic. Like, I’ll come back out the next day and act like that bad day from the day before never happened. But right in the moment I want to be perfect. I want to be perfect, not for myself necessarily, but perfect for the other 10 guys on the field and the other 52 guys on the roster. That’s really important for me.
So to be able to be perfect, I have to keep going, keep getting the reps, keep accumulating those reps, mentally and physically and seeing different things so I can go out and make the right judgment and make the right read.
I understand that there are going to be mess-ups. But I also understand that I’m going to keep trying to be who I am.
That word often comes up when hearing teammates talk about great quarterbacks. You heard about Tom Brady from Patriots players. You heard it from Saints players about Drew Brees and Packers players about Aaron Rodgers. All of them were constantly harping on the details of what they did and what their offensive teammates did. Everything needed to be right. Over the past 40 years since media coverage became more prevalent in football, nobody has ever said something like this about a Bears quarterback.
Nobody can say for sure what Caleb Williams will become. One thing is clear. He isn’t intimidated by the expectations. He’s been under the spotlight since leaving high school as a top recruit. The brighter the spotlight, the better he seems to perform. Being the #1 overall pick won’t suddenly stop him from searching for ways to improve. He is on a mission to achieve greatness. That often comes from chasing perfection. Even though he will never get there, the effort will almost certainly yield great results.
