The Chicago Bears are kicking off a new era with quarterback Caleb Williams, who was selected with the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft.
ESPN believes Williams has been set up for immediate success in his rookie season. And it’s easy to see why. General manager Ryan Poles has been carefully crafting an ideal situation for his new rookie quarterback.
That starts with assembling an arsenal of weapons including wide receivers DJ Moore, Keenan Allen and rookie Rome Odunze, running back D’Andre Swift and tight ends Cole Kmet and Gerald Everett. Chicago’s offensive line has also improved, and the Bears have a potential top-10 defense looking to build off their impressive finish last season.
Yes, Williams easily has the best situation of any quarterback chosen No. 1, at least since 1980. In my value estimates, the difference between the Bears’ skill players and the 2009 Lions is roughly the same as the gap between the Lions and the No. 12 team (Jeff George and the 1990 Colts).
We’ll start with DJ Moore, who has cracked 1,000 receiving yards in four of the past five seasons and is coming off career highs with 1,364 yards and eight touchdowns in 2023. Then comes Keenan Allen, who had 1,000 receiving yards in five of the past seven seasons for the Chargers and had 1,243 yards and seven touchdowns in only 13 games last season. The Rome Odunze pick makes Williams the first quarterback picked No. 1 to play with a first-round wide receiver from the same draft.
At tight end, the Bears will have both Cole Kmet (73-719-6 in 2023) and Gerald Everett(51-411-3 for the Chargers last season). The starting running back, D’Andre Swift, had 1,049 yards and five touchdowns for the Eagles and will be backed up by last year’s Bears starter, Khalil Herbert. Even the offensive line is better than you think — it was fifth in pass block win rate and second in run block win rate last season.
Expectations are certainly high for Williams heading into his rookie season. While there will certainly be growing pains, as with any rookie, the Bears have done everything they can to make this acclimation period as smooth as possible for Williams.
