Jason Burgos
Former ESPN NFL analyst Merril Hoge believes the Chicago Bears potentially replacing Justin Fields by drafting Caleb Williams would be a very bad decision because in his mind the USC star is just “not special.”
The Bears have a huge decision to make in April. For a second straight year, they will have the top overall pick in the NFL Draft and have to decide if they should use it on the top QB in this class or go in a different direction because they believe incumbent starting quarterback — and former first-round pick — Justin Fields is their franchise signal-caller.
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Unlike last year when they traded out of the No. 1 selection, many around the league believe this time the Bears won’t pass on this unique opportunity because Caleb Williams is seen as a can’t-miss prospect. However, one person who believes the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner could be a big miss is former Pittsburgh Steelers star and one-time ESPN NFL analyst Merril Hoge.
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In a conversation with uStadium this week, ahead of the Super Bowl, Hoge took some major shots at Williams and warned the Chicago Bears not to try and make up for their mistake in the 2017 NFL Draft because they believe Williams can be the next Patrick Mahomes.
“I’ve only watched Caleb Williams in three games last year and three games this year, so I am only halfway done. The one thing that is clear, he is not special,” he said. “He is not something unique like Patrick Mahomes and I hope the Bears don’t think, ‘Let’s try to make up for our mistake when we passed on Patrick Mahomes and get [him now].’ The kid is not Patrick Mahomes. Not remotely close.”
Not only does the Hoge believe Caleb Williams would be a big risk as the top overall pick, but he also believes Justin Fields has done enough to prove he has franchise QB potential despite having multiple offensive coordinators during his NFL career.
“It is unfair to Justin Fields. He has had a new coordinator [often during his career],” Hoge said. “There’s no possible way you can know about your [quarterback] when you do that. It’s the worst thing that can happen to any player, especially a quarterback. … What I have seen in Justin Fields, from my evaluation, is there is enough growth and hope there that I would not let him go. I see enough there.”
The Bears infamously chose to select Mitchell Trubisky with the second overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. Mahomes went eight picks later at 10.
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