The new-look Chicago Bears are almost ready to kick off the 2024 regular season, and despite a lot of hype and anticipation across local and national media alike, no one seems more eager to get the ball rolling (or flying through the air) than first-overall pick quarterback Caleb Williams.
After several spectacular pre-season moments and over a month of coverage on HBO's Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Chicago Bears, Williams has seemingly already become a household name across the league, and the superstar in the making took time during Wednesday's media session to discuss his anticipation for opening weekend, as well as the preparation that he, the offense, and the team as a whole has put in thus far.
"When feet touch the grass it's going to be business as usual", Williams stated when discussing his upcoming NFL debut. "I normally like to see the stadium, take it all in, and feel the energy and the vibe, and get going from there".
The scene at Soldier Field on Sunday will likely be closer to that of a circus than an average Chicago Bears' home game, but Williams emphasized that he is not looking to inflate his stats against the Titans, but rather looks to how he can help the team walk away from the game 1-0.
"If we come out and decide that the offensive line is dominating, the wide receivers are dominating blocks, we're extending runs... if we got guys out there giving that type of energy and we're handing the ball off... it's hard to beat that," Williams said of the gameplan before adding "Wins are the most important thing".
Caleb Williams continues to impress with his maturity
This approach may not be exactly what Bears fans want to hear, especially with inflated expectations that Williams is going to be the best quarterback in franchise history on day one, but it shows a team-first perspective that could easily have been lost upon a first overall pick, Heisman winning collegiate superstar. Thankfully, Williams remains grounded heading into his debut weekend, and credits his teammates, both on offense and defense, as key figures in his preparation on and off the field.
On his growth throughout training camp, Williams explained: "It's been awesome the amount of ball that I've been able to see, the amount of ball that I've been able to learn from the coaches, and also from being out there with the guys, listening to people like Keenan and also going against the defense". Williams continued, saying, "I don't think there's many teams that practice the way that we do. I think being able to go against a defense like this, and how tough they are on QBs... I think it's going to help me... there's going to be times when I do struggle, but when those times come, you know how to kind of get back on track react".
Repetition repetition repetition.
— NFL Films (@NFLFilms) September 4, 2024
Caleb Williams is building the foundation for success 🎥#HardKnocks all episodes available on @Streamonmax pic.twitter.com/ZHQjqkpGRz
From everything that has come out of Halas Hall since the selection of Williams, it appears that the young signal-caller has the proper mentality to accompany his game-changing physical abilities. The experience of practicing against one of the league's premier defensive backfields has provided the former Trojan and Sooner with a deep set of on-field experiences that the quarterback will be able to rely on as soon as this Sunday.