Ryan Poles talks about pre-draft comparisons between Caleb Williams, Patrick Mahomes
Ryan Poles, the general manager of the Chicago Bears, offers a unique perspective when folks compare Caleb Williams to Patrick Mahomes.
After all, Poles was director of college scouting for the Chiefs when Mahomes was putting up pinball type stats at Texas Tech. Mahomes surged during the scouting process. And the Chiefs selected Mahomes with the 10th pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. And we all know what’s happened since then — Mahomes has helped KC win three Super Bowl titles.
Back in late April, Poles and the Bears selected Williams with the No. 1 pick of the draft. Williams was one of the best-known college football players in recent history. By draft day, no one was questioning whether the Bears would select him. There was some chatter about Williams not being as strong of a player his final season at USC. But there was plenty of film showing him at his best.
And that was Poles’ point when he spoke with ESPN’s Adam Schefter earlier this summer. Sure, there were pre-draft comparisons between the two QBs. But they weren’t that alike.
“No, it was actually a lot different just because Caleb just had so much hype from high school,” Poles said. “So he had been in the spotlight, he had been talked about so much and really his last year, the narrative was how bad this past season was, which when you really watch it, you can put that together and you see the talent throughout the last three years.”
And this is what the Bears GM said about the scouting process on Mahomes.
“I think Pat slowly started to get higher, higher in the draft,” Poles said. “I know when we (the Chiefs) made that trade, we were praying he was going to make it there and he did. So it was a little bit different, this was more high profile coming out than Pat’s situation.”
Williams was a super blue chip coming out of high school. The On3.com Industry Average ranked Williams as the No. 7 player in the country and a unanimous five-star. He signed with Oklahoma, then transferred to USC when coach Lincoln Riley changed jobs.
Meanwhile, Mahomes was a three-star prospect when he played for Whitehouse High School in the piney woods of East Texas. When he announced for the NFL Draft, many analysts projected him as a third rounder. Then scouts started paying attention.
Poles also talked about the two quarterbacks when the Bears general manager attended the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
“There’s artists, and then there’s surgeons,” Poles told reporters. In this scenario, he said both Mahomes and Williams were the artists, the creative playmakers who keep fans entertained throughout a game. So who are the surgeons? Poles said the two biggest were Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. Each took their offenses up and down the field with a precision and skill.
NFL fans can get their first look at Williams and the Bears when exhibition season starts next month. The Bears rookies are set to report Tuesday, with veterans following on Friday. Mahomes and the Chiefs start July 21.