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The recent revelation about Bears quarterback Caleb Williams's struggles to adjust to NFL defenses is reminiscent of the current Detroit Lions quarterback's rookie year.
ESPN's Seth Wickersham reported extensively on Williams's entrance into the league in his upcoming book, including his hesitancy to go to the Bears despite being the projected No. 1 overall pick. Wickersham also detailed the deserted state the former Bears staff left Williams in early last season when it came to learning to read defenses.
"At times, Williams said he would watch film alone, with no instruction or guidance from the coaches," Wickersham said. "'No one tells me what to watch,' Caleb Williams told his dad. 'I just turn it on.'"
Williams was sacked a league-high 68 times in 2024 on what was initially projected to be a solid group on offense, minus the offensive line.
Though the reporting suggests Williams's former coaches let him down, it isn't the first time a No. 1 pick entered the league without a cerebral mastery of all things pre-snap. Lions quarterback Jared Goff had a tumultuous rookie season of his own with the Rams, and head coach Sean McVay was hired in Goff's second season with a lot of work to do.
Athlon Sports's Doug Farrar talked to ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky about getting a call from McVay to help Goff learn to watch film.
"And this isn't a knock on Jared at all," Orlovsky said. "Jared will tell you this straight up. I go out there, and every day, we would study tape in the meeting rooms. I would then go to Jared's house and he had spent money, because Jared wanted to learn. He built himself a film study room."
Orlovsky detailed how things he considered baseline knowledge in the film room were often things Goff hadn't even heard of.
"I realized... do you know what over and under fronts are? And he's like, no. So he didn't even know — the number one pick in the NFL draft, what an over or under front was. I learned that in high school."
Since then, Goff has been to a Super Bowl and another NFC Championship game with the Lions and is coming off one of the best seasons of his career. His recent success should make the task less daunting for the Bears and new head coach Ben Johnson to get Williams ready to go every week.
This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Jared Goff, Caleb Williams had rookie coaching, film study challenges
Continue reading...
ESPN's Seth Wickersham reported extensively on Williams's entrance into the league in his upcoming book, including his hesitancy to go to the Bears despite being the projected No. 1 overall pick. Wickersham also detailed the deserted state the former Bears staff left Williams in early last season when it came to learning to read defenses.
"At times, Williams said he would watch film alone, with no instruction or guidance from the coaches," Wickersham said. "'No one tells me what to watch,' Caleb Williams told his dad. 'I just turn it on.'"
Williams was sacked a league-high 68 times in 2024 on what was initially projected to be a solid group on offense, minus the offensive line.
Though the reporting suggests Williams's former coaches let him down, it isn't the first time a No. 1 pick entered the league without a cerebral mastery of all things pre-snap. Lions quarterback Jared Goff had a tumultuous rookie season of his own with the Rams, and head coach Sean McVay was hired in Goff's second season with a lot of work to do.
Athlon Sports's Doug Farrar talked to ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky about getting a call from McVay to help Goff learn to watch film.
"And this isn't a knock on Jared at all," Orlovsky said. "Jared will tell you this straight up. I go out there, and every day, we would study tape in the meeting rooms. I would then go to Jared's house and he had spent money, because Jared wanted to learn. He built himself a film study room."
Orlovsky detailed how things he considered baseline knowledge in the film room were often things Goff hadn't even heard of.
"I realized... do you know what over and under fronts are? And he's like, no. So he didn't even know — the number one pick in the NFL draft, what an over or under front was. I learned that in high school."
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Since then, Goff has been to a Super Bowl and another NFC Championship game with the Lions and is coming off one of the best seasons of his career. His recent success should make the task less daunting for the Bears and new head coach Ben Johnson to get Williams ready to go every week.
This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Jared Goff, Caleb Williams had rookie coaching, film study challenges
Continue reading...
