Strong quarterback play has not been a feature of many Bears teams, but the hope in Chicago is that they’ve finally found the right guy to change that narrative.
There was plenty of excitement about Caleb Williams when he was drafted first overall in April and it didn’t dim during an offseason that showed off the playmaking ability that made him a top prospect. That excitement stretches from the fanbase to the executive suite as team chairman George McCaskey said this week that “you can feel it growing as the season approaches.”
McCaskey hopes that the excitement about what Williams means for the future of the franchise is matched by an understanding that everything isn’t going to fall into place all at once.
“Typically, the No. 1 pick in the draft comes into a situation where it’s going to take awhile for things to come together,” McCaskey said, via Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times. “Caleb’s got a lot of support — a solid defense, good receivers, good offensive line, a good running game, tight ends. But I hope people will be patient. There are going to be growing pains. He’s going to make mistakes. That’s part of the learning process for any young quarterback.”
McCaskey’s correct about the realities of football, but patience isn’t an inexhaustible resource in the NFL. Any growing pains can’t be so great that it is hard to see the team taking steps toward being the kind of contender Chicago has desired for a long time and that balancing act will begin in a little more than a week.