GIANTS REALLY DIG THEIR NEW NABERS
No surprise as Bears take QB Williams with No.1 pick
There was no surprise atop the 2024 NFL Draft, as USC quarterback Caleb Williams — the generational talent with a similarly unique business outlook — went first overall to the Chicago Bears.
That pick began a historic – and sometimes stunning – run on quarterbacks to kick off Thursday’s first-round, with Washington taking LSU’s Jayden Daniels second overall and New England selecting UNC’s Drake Maye at No. 3.
In a major shock, the Atlanta Falcons – who signed Kirk Cousins to a fouryear, $180 million contract last month – took another quarterback in Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. at No. 8.
The Vikings then moved up one spot to No. 10 in a trade with the Jets and selected Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy. Denver drafted Oregon’s Bo Nix two picks later at No. 12.
It’s by the far the fastest that a draft has reached six quarterback selections, obliterating the previous record of 27 picks in 1983.
Chicago’s selection of Williams, expected for more than a month after the team traded away Justin Fields, gives the perpetually quarterback-needy Bears another crack at a franchise guy.
Dressed in a navy-blue suit resembling the Bears’ home uniform, Williams unleashed a guttural scream as he walked across the stage at Detroit’s Campus Martius Park and hugged NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
“Learn all my teammates’ names, their families, learn the playbook and get ready to go win games,” Williams said on the ESPN broadcast of his plans after being drafted.
Williams, 22, totaled 10,082 passing yards and 93 touchdowns against 14 interceptions over three seasons at Oklahoma and USC, all under coach Lincoln Riley, and won the 2022 Heisman Trophy.
Touted for his special playmaking both in a structured offense and when improvising, Williams is considered the best quarterback prospect since at least Trevor Lawrence, who went No. 1 overall to the Jacksonville Jaguars three years ago.
The Bears owned this year’s No. 1 pick through a 2023 trade with the Carolina Panthers, who acquired last year’s first overall pick in the deal and used it to select quarterback Bryce Young.
Speculation swirled at the beginning of the offseason as to whether the Bears would stick with the dual-threat Fields, whom they selected 11th overall three years ago, and trade this year’s top pick for a franchise-altering haul. But Chicago’s intentions became clear after they sent Fields to Pittsburgh for a conditional sixth-round selection.
The Bears were reportedly the only team Williams conducted a top-30 visit with.
Complicating Williams’ stock was his unorthodox approach to his brand. He made millions of dollars in college through NIL. He didn’t hire an agent. His father, Carl Williams, complained to GQ about a draft structure that rewards the NFL’s worst teams and, according to The Athletic, unsuccessfully explored ways his son’s contract could include team equity.
But none of that scared off Chicago, which hopes Williams can become the first 4,000-yard passer in franchise history.
Maye, meanwhile, garnered numerous suitors, with the Giants and Minnesota Vikings heavily rumored to explore trading up to No. 3. The Patriots ultimately stayed in the slot and selected Maye, hoping he can become their long-term replacement for Tom Brady.
The first non-quarterback went No. 4, where the Arizona Cardinals took wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. out of Ohio State. The 6-4 Harrison – the son of Hall of Fame wideout Marvin Harrison – was the first of three wide receivers selected in the top 10, with LSU’s Malik Nabers going to the Giants at No. 6 and Washington’s Rome Odunze going No. 9 to the Bears.
Man nothin motivated me more than watching the NFL draft every year and hoping that’d be me… and now I’m here. @MarvHarrisonJr