Three weeks of the NFL have people stumbling over each other to be able to give the hottest take they can, which is a great time to center the masses and get them to calm down — particularly when it comes to young quarterbacks (except for Jaguars fans).
That’s where this week’s Four Verts column starts, with a trip to Chicago to get people to relax about the future of their franchise.
Caleb Williams is performing better than people think
Everyone, let’s calm down. It’s time to realize that perhaps NFL fans have been a bit spoiled by young quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson reaching elite status so early in their careers. That’s not the normal development path, really. Most baby quarterbacks need some seasoning and reps and lots of practice before they ascend to the top of the sport, which is a big reason why NFL passing games are down right now. There’s no reason to look at all of these guys with a sense of despair, even with Jayden Daniels having a breakout performance on national television that many young players haven’t had to date.
That’s particularly true of Bears rookie Caleb Williams, who currently sits at the bottom of many NFL efficiency stats, leading people to wonder, after three games, if Chicago might have selected the wrong guy. Whew. Breathe. It’s healthy for you. Slow down. Feel the breeze. It’s far too early to make that proclamation and honestly, there isn’t a reason to freak out about Williams just yet.
The overall numbers have been poor so far. Williams currently ranks 29th in expected points per dropback (-0.34) according to NFL Pro’s list of qualified passers — only Will Levis (-0.44) and Bryce Young (-0.60) have been worse in terms of efficiency. Part of that is due to Williams, who is still testing the limits of what will be possible for him at the NFL level. Part of that is due to a poor showing from the Bears’ offensive line, especially the interior, which has been putrid so far this…
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