Bill Belichick didn’t get on hype train for Caleb Williams after the Bears rookie quarterback shined in the preseason.
During his new gig as an analyst on “Inside the NFL” on the CW, Belichick explained why he wasn’t impressed with Williams, whom the Bears selected with the No. 1 pick out of USC in this year’s draft.
“Well, he wasn’t accurate, he was 10-for-20,” Belichick said, which drew laughs from host Ryan Clark and fellow analyst Chad Ochocinco Johnson.
“There were a couple of highlight plays, but they weren’t that good.”
Before that, Belichick mentioned that Williams didn’t put on a show against starters.
“Whoever they played in preseason, it wasn’t the best players on the other team,” he said.
Williams faced some of the Bills’ starters when he led the Bears to a 33-6 win in his preseason debut.
The 22-year-old Williams went 4 of 7 for 95 yards including overseeing two field-goal drives.
In 43 preseason snaps, Williams showed flashes of arm strength, playmaking abilities and versatility outside of the pocket.
After the preseason, Bears head coach Matt Eberflus said he saw the USC product excel on and off the field.
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“He’s been working his tail off for 15 practices and then even before that all through the summer. So it’s good to be able to say, ‘Hey, all this drill work, all the things I’ve been doing, it’s paying off and I can see improvements,’” Eberflus said last month.
“We’re going to look at this tape and look back and say, ‘What can I learn from this?’ There’s a lot of things we can learn from this process in getting these reps as he does in practice when he’s going against the one defense.”
In 2023, Williams threw for 3,633 yards with 30 touchdowns and five picks for the Trojans — and rushed for 11 touchdowns.
The Bears open the 2024 regular season against the Titans in Chicago on Sept. 8.
