During his time in college, Caleb Williams earned a reputation for making all sorts of highlight-reel plays once plays broke down. He had an uncanny sense for avoiding pressure, scrambling out of trouble, and making pinpoint passes down the field for big plays. Scouts and experts called it “putting on the Superman cape.” Williams had to do that a lot in 2023, trying to make up for his team’s obvious deficiencies on offense and defense. While it was incredible to watch at times, many worried that he was becoming too reliant on the approach. There was no way he’d get away with that in the NFL.
Former Bears wide receiver Tom Waddle decided to ask Williams about that on Waddle & Silvy for ESPN 1000. The rookie made it clear he understood that playing that way wasn’t conducive to a productive offense. He needed to learn how to play inside the offensive structure, distributing the football based on his reads from the pocket. If the situation called for him to do something extra, only then would he do it. Williams even has a name for it.
The X-factor.
Some might see that as a young kid being arrogant. That isn’t true. Williams sounds like somebody who knows what he is capable of. He understands that he can make things happen in ways others can’t because he did it for years in college. The Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers comparisons didn’t just fall out of the sky. What Williams can do is in a rare category. Calling it the X-factor is accurate. It is the type of ability that opposing teams lose sleep over.
The Bears’ job isn’t to break him of those habits. That would be foolish. No, their job is to enhance it by making him equally dangerous from the pocket, as Kansas City did with Mahomes. Caleb Williams is fully capable of this. He has the poise, vision, and pocket presence to handle it. The only thing he needs is the right coaching and enough reps. Hiring Shane Waldron as offensive coordinator was an important step in that direction. His first real experience is less than two weeks away.
