Bears tight end Caleb Williams, the number one pick, “can see the progress” he has made.
Caleb Williams, the first overall pick chosen by the Bears, is the subject of much anticipation, and with good reason.
Following two seasons at USC when he passed for 8,170 yards, 72 touchdowns, and just 10 interceptions, the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner is now a part of a potent offense.
Williams’ NFL career, however, apparently got off to a rough start during OTAs last month. So much so that after a “frustrating” day, the rookie received some advise from two-time Pro Bowl safety Kevin Byard.
“I said something to him at the end of practice like, ‘Keep it going. We’re going to keep making you better,'” Byard said via Courtney Cronin of ESPN.com. “And not necessarily saying he had a terrible day, but days like this are going to make you better.”
Luckily for Chicago, that’s exactly what fifth-year tight end Cole Kmet, among others, has seen since.
“You can see why he’s been so successful thus far in his football career and why he has those types of intangibles to succeed in the NFL,” Kmet said on SiriusXM NFL Radio. “I’m really excited for him. He’s been putting in a lot of work and you can see the progress he was making throughout the OTA period.”
It shouldn’t come as a surprise when rookies have some early struggles, no matter where they were drafted, but Williams is being held to a different standard.
NFL.com’s Eric Edholm thinks fans should change that and hinder their expectations for him in year one.
“I’m not exactly sure where I’d rate the expectations for Caleb Williams in Year 1, but they feel high to me,” Edholm writes. “Bears fans might want and expect immediate fireworks, but I’m here to say that the show might start a bit slowly.”
This isn’t to say Williams will go on to have a bad career, but he may have some ups and downs that come with getting acclimated to the NFL.
Fans should take solace in the knowledge that Williams has already made progress because the Bears will always ride with him. As the year goes on, they hope he will keep moving in the right way.
