Star Black quarterbacks no longer are the exception – they’re the rule. Throughout the football season, this series will explore the prominence and impact of Black quarterbacks from the grassroots level to the NFL.
CHICAGO – The regular-season debut of Chicago Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams is behind him, and that’s a good thing for both Williams and the Bears.
There’s no sugarcoating that Williams – the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft in April – struggled throughout a season-opening 24-17 victory over the Tennessee Titans at Soldier Field on Sunday. He rushed throws. He missed open receivers. He made bad decisions while trying to extend plays.
Yep. Not good.
One career start, however, does not a career make. On Sunday, Williams gets his second chance to make a better impression as the Houston Texans host the Bears at NRG Stadium.
For any highly touted first-year passer, Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud provides a great role model.
Stroud, selected second overall in the 2023 draft, is roundly viewed as the game’s fastest-rising quarterback. After leading the Texans to the AFC South title and a wild-card playoff victory over the Cleveland Browns last season, Stroud was selected as the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year.
The choice was a no-brainer.
Now, the Texans, who opened on the road with a 29-27 victory over the Indianapolis Colts, are considered to have one the league’s strongest rosters. Stroud is at the top of it, and the Bears hope Williams will show progress in his first road test against a top-notch team.
Although Bears coach Matt Eberflus acknowledges Williams must improve, he is not worried about Williams lacking the mettle to rebound from his rough opening outing.
“I don’t think there was any anxiety. He was calm, cool and collected the whole time. Never got frustrated,” Eberflus said after the Bears rallied from a 17-point deficit in the second quarter.
“We always talk to him about the response you have of just hanging in there, because sometimes it can get rough on both sides. You’ve just got to hang in there. You’ve got to have that belief … the belief in the man next to you, belief in your teammates. It’s not just about one guy.”
Over the long haul, however, quarterbacks have an outsize role in a team’s performance. That’s why the Bears used the top pick in the draft to select the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner out of USC.
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It would be unreasonable for the Bears to have buyer’s remorse after only one game. But Williams, well, he has plenty of room to grow.
Williams completed only 14 passes in 29 attempts for 93 passing yards – an average of a paltry 3.2 yards per attempt – with no touchdown passes. On a positive note for Williams, he didn’t commit a turnover.
Clearly disappointed in his performance after the game, Williams nonetheless believes he’s not far off from finding his groove.
“There are small things that always lead up to big things, make those moments and things like that a lot bigger, that make games a lot closer,” Williams said. “Just the small things.”
In the Texans’ win over the Colts, Stroud performed superbly at matters big and small.
The former Ohio State star completed 24 of 32 passes for 234 passing yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. With 11 victories during its past 18 games, Houston has matched its win total from the previous three regular seasons combined, a span of 50 games.
Moving to bolster their receiving corps to maximize their star quarterback’s talents, the Texans acquired All-Pro wideout Stefon Diggs from the Buffalo Bills in April. Diggs caught both of Stroud’s touchdown passes against the Colts.
During his rookie season, Stroud exhibited poise beyond his experience. As impressed as the Texans were with his talent, they were even happier about Stroud’s determination to lead and set a positive example from the moment he joined the franchise. To say the Texans believe they nailed it on the drafting of Stroud would be a massive understatement.
Before the draft, renowned quarterback coach Quincy Avery expressed confidence that the team that picked Stroud would wind up being very pleased. Based on the Texans’ reaction to Stroud, it’s as if Avery had a crystal ball.
“C.J. is just so diligent in his work ethic,” Avery, who has known Stroud since the passer was 17, told Andscape.
“There are just very few people who work as hard as C.J., and you really saw it when he was 17. When he came into [a quarterback camp at which Avery was an instructor], nobody really looked at him like, ‘Oh, man, this guy is gonna be super-special.’ He came into the situation where we’re [the camp coaches] all like, ‘He might be OK.’ Then, he absolutely dominated.
“And every quarterback was there. Guys you see playing in the league now. At Ohio State, C.J. did the same thing. He just keeps attacking. Now that he’s in the NFL, he’s just continued that. When someone prepares as hard as C.J. does, is just so diligent in their work ethic, that’s when you see the fruits of that labor.”
For the Texans, Stroud’s labor has helped to produce much of their recent success. The Bears are counting on Williams to produce similarly.
