Minnesota Vikings may be doing recon on next Chicago Bears starting quarterback

On Wednesday night, the Chicago Bears officially had their Scouting Combine visit with the potential first-overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Caleb Williams.

The interviews at the NFL Scouting Combine are somewhat formulaic in that it's nothing more than a 20-minute meet and greet between the prospect and the NFL team. Of course, for the Bears, the meeting with Williams likely has more substance considering the likelihood of the team selecting the quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft in April.

The Bears undoubtedly will be meeting with Williams at USC's Pro Dray and likely one final time at Halas Hall in the weeks leading up to the draft at the end of April. That is likely where the groundwork will be laid between the team and who they believe is their next franchise quarterback.

While the Bears meeting with Williams in Indianapolis this week was no surprise, there was a team listed among the USC quarterback's visits that raised some eyebrows. The Minnesota Vikings were among the teams that Williams met with on Wednesday.

Depending on both the health of veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins after Cousins suffered an ACL tear last season and the progress of contract negotiations, the Vikings could be in a position where they are looking for their next quarterback in the NFL Draft.

The Minnesota Vikings might doing early homework on the next starting quarterback of the Chicago Bears.

Having said that, short of the Vikings offering the Bears superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson and more first-round picks than they are actually allowed to offer, there likely is no scenario that exists where the Bears trade the top pick to the Vikings, especially since it's clear the Bears are not sold on their current quarterback, Justin Fields.

The Vikings likely won't be in a position to draft Williams but they could be using this time with the quarterback to lay the groundwork for scouting how to play defense against him. If Williams is going to be playing against the Vikings for at least the next four seasons, it goes without saying that Minnesota will likely want to get as much information directly from the quarterback as they can.

At the end of the day, Scouting Combine visits are rather mundane as every team meets with nearly every prospect but it's a free information-gathering session on potential opponents and that is likely where the Vikings' interest lies in their conversations with Williams this week.

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