The Chicago Bears have been and will continue to be the talk of the off-season. And they should be. One of the original founding teams of the NFL is about to be on hard knocks. Myself and the McCaskey family were firmly against it, but you can't hide HBO forever. The 2024 Chicago Bears have some really unfair expectations, and they should.
Can you say a team of this talent doesn't have a shot at going the distance? Yes, Caleb Williams is a rookie, but the team is basically complete. The goal in the NFL is to build an offense that can score points and a defense that can stop scoring, right?
We can nitpick the offensive line or the secondary pass rusher, but most teams don't become 100% complete. The Kansas City Chiefs have had one pass rusher and a not-so-elite running game. Tom Brady has had to fire off 500-plus yards at times to keep up with his failing defense. Peyton Manning wasn't what he was when he was a Denver Bronco. You get my point.
Caleb Williams needs to be the answer; otherwise, all of this will be for nothing. So yes, the Chicago Bears team is built. Williams's stats won't matter except for the win total. Yes, wins are a quarterback stat. Does it suck that it isn't entirely their fault if they win or lose? Yes. But if your kid fails the 7th grade, that is directly tied to you know who.
Anywho, Williams will have to go where no rookie quarterback has gone for the Chicago Bears before. It's unfair that a rookie be put in those shoes, but the team could have parlayed that draft capital for an established quarterback veteran or kept Justin Fields. Ryan Poles chose to go in this direction. Honestly, I probably would have done the same in his shoes but for a different quarterback like Bo Nix or Michael Pinex.
Yeah, yeah, thank gosh that I'm not the general manager, right? Haha, I wouldn't have taken them with the first-draft pick. I toss around the word anomaly a lot, but Williams has that chance to become that guy. I just praised a Packer fan for Aaron Rodgers' talent. Someone on Twitter was bashing Rodgers based on his MVPs and lack of championships. Not all Championships are created equally, though.
Rodgers dominated the NFC North. He won the NFC North division eight times, went to the conference championship game four times, and has 475 passing touchdowns and only 105 interceptions. I am not a Packers fan, I promise, but that is outstanding for a guy who likely won't have a HOF receiver from GB, minus maybe Davanta Adams.
Williams is entering the opposite of that situation in his rookie season. I don't want to speak too soon, but Keenan Allen is well on his way with his credentials. Minus touchdowns, DJ Moore is probably going to finish as a better player than Jordy Nelson. And the Bears drafted a rookie receiver in the first round to learn from both of them. It's something Aaron Rodgers never had.
The offense, even with a bad play-caller, has a chance to thrive based on talent alone. The defense is outstanding. The defensive talent is on the back end, but that's okay. If the time isn't now, then I truly don't know when it will be for the Chicago Bears. I put my trust in Ryan Poles and his evaluation process and build. The Bear's roster is the best it's been on paper in a long time.
The high expectations aren't unfair. The pressure is right where it should be. If Caleb Williams is the real deal, watch out, everybody. The Chicago Bears are coming.