Caleb Williams: 'Pressure isn't a word that I use in my vocabulary'
Chicago Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams will arguably face more pressure and expectations than any other first-year NFL player in recent history this upcoming season. Tasked with living up to his NFL Draft evaluation comparisons to Patrick Mahomes while also helping lead the Bears to championship heights as a franchise desperate to achieve success.
But amid his first training camp, Williams made it clear that the pressure is not going to get to him any time soon. Revealing that the word is not even part of his lexicon in an interview with SiriusXM NFL Radio.
“Pressure isn’t a word that I use in my vocabulary, really only when other people talk about it,” Williams said. “And every time that you’ll hear me speak about pressure is that I don’t think that pressure is a thing as long as you prepare for the moment mentally and physically.”
“Get in here work, get after it, whether it’s weight room, film room, and then get on the field and work and then obviously game days. Get out there and go be special.”
Williams’ mentality regarding pressure clearly worked well for him at the college level. Taking home the 2022 Heisman Trophy after shattering numerous single-season program records at USC where he ended his two seasons as a starter with 8,688 yards of total offense and 93 total touchdowns.
And while the level of difficulty and the level of pressure ramp up from the college to the pro level, the formula of preparation translating to performance on the field remains the same.
“And so I think pressure comes from not being ready, pressure comes from not having a confidence, and I think preparation’s everything,” Williams explained. “That’s what coach says and so just getting after it, enjoying it, enjoying the process, challenging myself, the coaches challenging me, responding, and just learning and soaking up all the information that I can. And then when we get out there just be free, have fun, communicate, and let it fly.”
Williams will have plenty of weapons to let it fly to this season, surrounded by playmakers that highly picked rookie quarterbacks normally do not have the luxury of playing with in their first seasons in the NFL. With new additions like wide receivers Kenan Allen and Rome Odunze paired with D.J. Moore and running back D’Andre Swift giving Williams plenty of options through the air and on the ground.
Clips of Williams making some impressive plays at training camp have already surfaced on social media, and it will be exciting to see if those same plays translate on Sundays this upcoming season as he looks to continue leaning into the preparation and away from pressure.