USC star Caleb Williams drafted No. 1 in NFL Draft
The Chicago Bears have a new quarterback: University of Southern California star and former Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams.
Williams was unsurprisingly selected by the Bear with the No. 1 pick in Thursday’s NFL Draft.
The pick was acquired by Chicago in a trade last season with the Carolina Panthers, who vaulted up the draft order to acquire the 2023 No. 1 pick that Chicago originally held so the team could draft Bryce Young.
The Panthers would end the 2023-24 season with the league’s worst record, providing the Chicago Bears the No. 1 overall pick for the second-straight season.
The now-former Trojan was a two-year starter with USC after transferring from Oklahoma.
Widely regarded as one of the best quarterback prospects in recent history, Williams finished his college career throwing 93 touchdowns against 14 interceptions and completing 67% of his passes. He also picked up 27 touchdowns and more than 900 yards on the ground as a runner.
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As a starter, Williams led his teams to a 23-10 combined record.
In the NFL, he’ll join a team with a much-maligned history at the quarterback position. Chicago is the only NFL team to never have a quarterback throw for 4,000 yards in a single season. The team’s all-time passing leader is Jay Cutler, who threw for 23,443 yards and 154 touchdowns as a Bear.
He’ll have lofty expectations in the pros, but will have several talented receivers to throw to in his rookie season, including former Los Angeles Chargers great Keenan Allen, wide receiver D.J. Moore, whom the team acquired in the Bryce Young trade, and up-and-coming tight end Cole Kmet.
Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels of LSU was drafted with the No. 2 overall pick to the Washington Commanders. Three more quarterbacks would be selected in the top 10, the most in Draft history.
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