With only one season under his belt, Chicago Bears quarterbackCaleb Williams is facing historical expectations. NFL.com columnist Jeffri Chadiha predicts Williams to throw 4,500 yards as well as 35 touchdowns this season.
Chadiha is not alone, as former Bears quarterback Rex Grossman has entered into the fray. Healso anticipates Williams putting up historical numbers, according to Ryan Droste of Windy City Gridiron.
In addition, Grossman expects Williams to be a franchise player within the right system.
“A lot of peoplecan’t (succeed out of structure), sohe’s got something a lot of peoplecan’t do,”Grossman said. “I sure as hellcouldn’t do it. Iwas pretty much stuck in the pocket, and I had to.He’s kind of got to force himself to resist the urgeof rolling out when hedoesn’t needto, ortaking unnecessary sacks. If you keep to schedule, meaning you keep your third downs manageable, it makes it a lot easier.”
Later on, Grossman referenced his breakout 2006/2007 season in which the Bears went to the Super Bowl. He used it as the basis for Williams to make history this year.
“During our Super Bowl run, we were ahead in a lot of games anddidn’t throw the ball a lot,“he said. “Thatreally wasn’t our identity.We were more play-actionpass,run the balland quick passes. I did have some big games, but the priority of that seasonwasn’t to put up stats. Stats are great if you have the personnel and the play package to throw the ball a lot. I think they will have a balanced offense, andhe’ll be around 4,200 or 4,300 yards this year.”
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Rex Grossman dismisses CalebWilliams draftclaims
Recently,Williams has been the subject of allegations that hedidn't want to be drafted by the Bears. A book by Seth Wickersham, entitledAmerican King: A Biography of the Quarterback, claims that Williams and his father coordinated efforts to ensure the Chicago Bearsdidn't draft him but instead by the Minnesota Vikings.
Williams has refuted those claims, as has Grossman.
“You start to develop a bond with all the peoplebehind-the-scenes and the fanbase,”Grossman said. “You get a house. Anything that happened beforethe draft should be ignored.I’m sureCaleb’s all-in now. I thinkthat’s something he tried to do with his team before the draft, but now,it’s a non-story.…I know everybody behind the scenes in Chicago is amazing, from theowner, to the equipmentmanagers, to the training staff. It’s a beautiful facility, soI’m surehe’s all bought in.”
Additionally, Bears coach Ben Johnson has created an environment that allows Williams to develop into a franchise quarterback.