NFL analyst believes Bears QB Caleb Williams was treated unfairly as rookie
Williams had a rocky rookie season that included two different head coaches, three offensive coordinators, being sacked a league-high 68 times, a 10-game losing streak and a 5-12 record. Meanwhile, the second overall pick, quarterback Jayden Daniels, shined with the Washington Commanders en route to Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.
Given all the turmoil that Williams experienced in his rookie season, the Bears made it their point of emphasis to boost the team around their young quarterback this offseason, specifically with an upgraded offensive line and new head coach in Ben Johnson.
670 The Score NFL Insider Hub Arkush recently appeared on the CHGO Bears podcast, where he shared his thoughts on how Williams was treated unfairly in his first season and how he was impressed by what the rookie showed despite all the turmoil.
"I thought he got treated very unfairly on his rookie year," Arkush said. "He didn't have a bad rookie year, if you look at his numbers, the record was bad but that's because the team was bad, that's because the coaching was bad. But if you look at his performance, he didn't play badly. He didn't play like Jayden Daniels did, he didn't take over the league but he couldn't with what he had around him. I'm excited with what I saw from his rookie year now that they've added so much talent around him and they added what I think is a much better coaching staff. I'm pretty excited about what I think you're going to see from him this year."
At the end of the day, today's NFL comes down to a quarterback's win-loss record, and while Williams statistically had a respectable season, the Bears going 5-12 hurt him in a big way. With a new coaching staff and more offensive line talent surrounding him, Williams will look to lead the Bears not only to a winning season but a playoff berth in his sophomore season.
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