The Chicago Bears will feature on HBO’s Hard Knocks later this month. However, that is the classic training camp version. HBO and NFL Films decided to expand the series this year by including an off-season version. That is where cameras follow an organization through the team-building process, from free agency through the draft. The New York Giants were selected as the first team to do this, commemorating their 100th anniversary. In the second episode, they went through multiple interviews at the scouting combine, paying particular attention to the quarterbacks. Sure enough, Caleb Williams made an appearance.
As an offensive guy, Giants head coach Brian Daboll wanted to see how he handled work on the whiteboard. That included getting the quarterbacks to draw up particular plays from memory that they loved. It was here that he posed an interesting question to Williams. If he could only run a single pass play over and over for an entire game, which one would he choose? After thinking for a moment, the quarterback found the perfect one. He then quickly drew it up, explaining why he preferred it.
Bears fans will love to look at how he sees the field and how his mind works. Daboll even compared him a bit to Brett Favre.
He was both self-assured and calm in his approach. There was no overthinking or stuttering. Despite having all of those prominent eyes on him, he diagramed the play and pinpointed the advantages of running it over and over. It was also great that he chose an empty formation, which basically put the ball in his hands. There would be no room for a running back in his money play—such a quarterback move. Jokes aside, it was fascinating to see his thought process and how confident he was in knowing he could put the ball where it needed to go.
One can safely assume the Chicago Bears have taken similar input from him over the past couple of months. Offensive coordinator Shane Waldron is sure to have some of those plays drawn up in the playbook. In the end, the Giants’ work didn’t matter. They selected a wide receiver at 6th overall instead. Their interviews ended up making nothing more than good television. Yet it’s easy to understand why they tried to trade up when the 1st round began. Caleb Williams and the others were impressive.
