New details from a forthcoming book indicate that quarterback Caleb Williams and his family explored their options for circumventing the NFL draft process in 2024 to avoid landing with the Chicago Bears, seeking to create a situation in which the Minnesota Vikings could draft the Heisman Trophy winner instead.
On Thursday, ESPN divulged several juicy details about Seth Wickersham’s upcoming book, “American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterbacks,” which featured interviews with both Caleb Williams and his father, Carl, in the months before the 2024 NFL draft.
“Chicago is the place quarterbacks go to die,” Carl Williams told Wickersham last year.
While the promotional article about Wickersham’s book shared several revelations about how Williams and his family navigated the pre-draft process, one of the most interesting tidbits was Williams’ interest in forcing his way to Minnesota after he and Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell “hit it off” during the 2024 NFL Combine.
Here’s the exchange that Wickersham described in his book:
“I need to go to the Vikings,” he told his father [after the combine].
“Let’s do it,” his father replied. But both Caleb and Carl knew that a trade to a divisional rival was extremely unlikely.
Bears GM Ryan Poles stood firm, telling Williams, “We’re drafting you no matter what.”
Wickersham’s book will be published on September 9 and is available for pre-order.
Caleb Williams Bought Into Chicago Bears After Visit
Some Bears fans will not like the new details about Williams and his family’s approach to the NFL draft. They weighed several strategies to help Williams — the expected No. 1 overall pick — control where he landed in the NFL, including a plan to “publicly attack the Bears and the city of Chicago, hoping that it would make the situation untenable.”
Ultimately, Williams told Wickersham that he “wasn’t ready to nuke the city.”
While Williams initially had his reservations about playing for Chicago, though, the new book also detailed the moment when Williams decided he wanted to become a Bear:
After a predraft visit to the Bears facility, Williams believed he could be part of a process to turn the franchise around.
“I can do it for this team,” Caleb told his dad. “I’m going to go to the Bears.”
Williams went on to have a tumultuous rookie season with the Bears in 2024. While he threw for 3,541 yards with 20 touchdowns and six interceptions, he was sacked an NFL-leading 68 times (tied for the third most in league history) behind an inadequate line.
Williams — who Wickersham wrote had concerns about former offensive coordinator Shane Waldron before the draft — also played for three different offensive coordinators throughout his rookie season. The No. 1 overall pick had plenty of his own accuracy and sack-avoidance issues as a rookie, but that is far from ideal for any NFL quarterback.
Will Caleb Williams Break Out With Ben Johnson in 2025?
Williams’ reluctance to play for the Bears will likely infest the discourse about him and his career trajectory in Chicago in the months leading up to the 2025 season. Even still, there are reasons for optimism about Williams’ long-term future with the Bears after the team hired offensive guru Ben Johnson as their new head coach in the offseason.
Under Johnson’s leadership in 2024, the Detroit Lions had the top scoring offense (33.2 points per game) and second-best passing offense (263.2 yards per game) in the league. Johnson has also earned praise for his creative offensive play-calling tendencies and his work in helping develop Jared Goff into a formidable, playoff-contending quarterback.
The Bears knew they needed to hire an offensive-minded coach for the 2025 season to maximize Williams’ chances of solidifying as their franchise quarterback. It helped, too, that one of the biggest draws to the Bears’ head-coaching vacancy for Johnson was the chance to work with Williams — whom he lauded while still coaching for the Lions.
Will Johnson’s presence — and the Bears’ many roster upgrades — help Williams break out during the 2025 season, though? That could depend on the quarterback himself.
Williams had plenty working against him in 2024, but he also experienced issues of his own making. He routinely overthrew his receivers and, at times, seemed more worried about avoiding interceptions than taking necessary chances to push the ball downfield. His tendency to lean on his evasive play style from college also resulted in more sacks.
Williams seems ready to embrace the process with Johnson and has a more talented supporting cast in place for him in 2025, but he will need to put it all together before Chicago’s fanbase will feel comfortable fully accepting him as “the guy” for the future.
Details Emerge on Caleb Williams’ Desire to Avoid Bears for Division Rival