"He is not special": Former Bears RB Merril Hoge drops his verdict on top 2024 NFL Draft prospect Caleb Williams

Caleb Williams is the top prospect in this year's NFL draft and has been widely predicted to be the number one pick of the draft.

The USC Trojans quarterback won the Heisman Trophy in 2022 and has thrown for nearly 10,000 yards and scored 93 touchdowns in his two years with the Trojans.

The current holders of the number one pick are the Chicago Bears, and they may be looking for a new quarterback since Justin Fields has, at times, struggled.

Given that they have the opportunity to bring in a potential franchise quarterback, many are saying that the Bears should not trade the number one pick and use it to bring Williams to the Windy City.

But, some players are not impressed with what they have seen from Williams. Former Bears running back Merril Hoge is one of these players. In an interview on Friday, Hoge said:

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“I’ve only watched Caleb Williams three games last year and three this year, so I’m only halfway done, O.K.? The one thing that is clear: He is not special,”

Caleb Williams is "not special"

Hoge does not believe the hype surrounding Williams. However, he has stated that he has only watched six games that Williams played in the last two years. Williams has played 26 games as a USC Trojans, 14 in his Heisman Trophy-winning year, and 12 this season.

This means that Hoge has only watched 23% of Williams' games. That is not enough to make an informed opinion on a player.

There must be another reason why Hoge is not a fan of Williams, and this reason relates to current Bears quarterback Justin Fields

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Hoge backs Fields

Hoge believes that the current talks of the Bears potentially drafting a quarterback are unfair to Fields.

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"It is unfair to Justin Fields… What I have seen from Justin Fields in my evaluation is that there’s enough growth and hope there, that I would not let him go, because I see enough there.”

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Hoge sees that Fields’ development is still ongoing, and given the right offense around him, he will be able to become an elite quarterback who is better than Caleb Williams.

In his three years as the Bears QB, Fields has only won 10 games, and nearly has as many interceptions as he has touchdowns. While he has a strong run game, his passing ability, the key aspect that a quarterback needs to have, is below par.

Fields will need a lot of time to fully develop, and maybe then it cannot be guaranteed that he will improve enough to become the elite franchise quarterback that the Bears need.

While drafting Williams may not be the solution, he has proved that he is able to make a change to a team. The question now is, will the Bears believe in Williams’ abilities or stick with Fields?

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Is the Chicago Bears a good landing spot for Caleb Williams? Exploring the USC quarterback's professional career ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft

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