Welcome to the heart of what some may term “silly speculation season” in the NFL calendar year. And Happy Super Bowl Sunday to everyone! The world’s largest professional (American) football league concludes its 2023-2024 season today.
Yesterday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network claimed that the Chicago Bears are “more likely than not” to select Caleb Williams first overall in the forthcoming draft. He also stated that it would take a “historic offer” for the Bears to relinquish complete control of the process. This is consistent with the widespread perception in the national media about what the Bears want to do this spring. Caleb Williams being a Chicago Bear seems almost inevitable, doesn’t it?
Don’t say that to the Washington commanders. Per Mike Garofolo of NFL Network the Commanders will approach the Bears about their first overall pick. He revealed this seconds after Ian Rapoport delivered his spiel on the Bears and his predictions for what would happen in the following weeks.
Mike Garofolo claimed that the Washington Commanders’ new ownership group, specifically Magic Johnson, informed new offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury that they’d “do as much as we possibly can to get the quarterback that you want.”
Kliff was most recently a senior analyst at USC, which included… Caleb Williams.
Kliff also has a history of choosing jobs where he knows either his chosen quarterback is already in place or the team has a good chance of acquiring that guy. This is why he accepted the Arizona Cardinals’ position in the first place, leading back to 2019 and their eventual selection of Kyler Murray. At the time, the Cardinals held the first overall pick. After being dismissed by the Cardinals, Kliff Kingsbury eventually accepted a position at USC to work with Caleb Williams. This story would then take a strange turn.
Things started to become weird during the 2024 off-season a few weeks ago. He initially took the offensive coordinator position with the Las Vegas Raiders. Then he backed out, accepting the same position with the Washington Commanders. The Commanders presently have the second overall pick. Is this a guarantee that they will go to any length to obtain Caleb Williams?
No. Far from it. Mike Garofolo did remark that, while the obvious connection exists between Kliff Kingsbury and Caleb Williams, they could also sit comfortably at #2 and take Drake Maye. This came after Ian Rapoport reiterated his report that the Bears are “likely” to draft Caleb Williams, mentioning that they may see him as “special.” However, to add to the fun, he later intimated that they would need to be “comfortable with (Caleb) as a person.”
Then Tom Pelissero said that the New England Patriots could enter the running for the top overall pick. Currently, the Patriots are ranked third overall, well outside the anticipated range for the top two quarterbacks to be picked. According to Ian Rapoport, GM Ryan Poles would need a “historic offer” to fall from first place overall for the second year in a row.
Adam Schefter of ESPN had his own point of view. For starters, he stated that he would be “surprised” if the Washington Commanders successfully completed the transaction required to earn the rights to the first overall choice. This is largely owing to Ryan Poles’ estimated asking price, whatever it is. Then he stated that the Bears might maintain Justin Fields while also drafting Caleb Williams. It’s dubious, but here’s Adam’s clip.
According to Schefter’s ESPN tape, he would be surprised if the Commanders would give enough to jump to one, owing in part to the fact that the next available quarterbacks are all promising prospects.
He also provides additional insight into the Kingsbury hire, so watch this clip as well.
Last year, the Bears got a “historic offer” from the Carolina Panthers to acquire the first overall pick. Undoubtedly, the Washington Commanders and the New England Patriots will need to do much more to achieve this. According to reports, the Commanders will make a concerted effort to reintegrate the Gonzaga College HS alum into the D.C. community. It is up to Bears general manager Ryan Poles to decide whether or not this happens at all.
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