It’s official. Caleb Williams, the top overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft will make his highly anticipated debut as the starter for the Chicago Bears this Saturday against the Buffalo Bills.
Bears head coach Matt Eberflus announced Thursday that Williams would take the field leading the first unit in the team’s second preseason game, along with all other healthy starters.
Williams was held out of the Hall of Fame Game as Tyson Bagent, Brett Rypien, and Austin Reed took all of the snaps under center. Eberflus believes that Williams is ready to play.
"He's right where he needs to be right now," he said. "He's having some good days, some good periods, and then some other ones that he's learning from adversity and a setback. I told him to just lean into that. When you have a setback or have adversity, don't shy away from it. Lean into it and then learn from it and then get better from it.
“The job’s not too big for him, and yet he has a lot to learn. This is the NFL. There is a learning curve to this, and it’s a process. So, we all have to play well around him…because he is a rookie and it’s the first time he’s going through this.”
There was some question as to whether or not Eberflus would utilize his starters due to some injuries on the Bears offensive line. However, as of Thursday’s practice session, the only injured starting lineman was guard Nate Davis. Davis is listed as week to week.
Williams is excited to take the field and says he is prepared to deal with the scrutiny that comes with being a rookie start at the NFL’s premium position.
“I don’t really care about the outside people,” said Williams. “I only care about the people in the building, the people I’m around every day.”
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