When the Chicago Bears selected quarterback Caleb Williams with the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, it immediately sparked optimism in a fanbase that has never experienced a franchise quarterback.
With training camp set to get underway later this week, Williams still hasn’t officially signed his rookie contract with the team. While that seems concerning, the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner is less focused on it than you’d think.
Over the weekend, Williams was in Chicago to announce the launch of his Caleb Cares charity. Unsurprisingly, the contract status became a topic of discussion.
“I’m not handling that,” Williams told the Chicago Tribune. “My lawyers and attorney and everybody, the head of the Bears, everybody up there up top is handling that. That’s not my position that I’m handling.”
Negotiations with first-round picks are generally relatively easy, as every pick has a slotted wage scale to correspond with the pick position.
Williams is also unique in that, as he said, he doesn’t have an NFLPA-certified agent; instead, he lets his lawyers handle the negotiations.
Williams is one of five 2024 first-round picks that remain unsigned, joining fellow Chicago Bear Rome Odunze, Minnesota Vikings linebacker and quarterback Dallas Turner and JJ McCarthy, and Cincinnati Bengals offensive lineman Amarius Mims.
While Williams has no deadline to sign, the Bears would almost certainly prefer to have both his and Odunze’s contract situations taken care of as soon as possible so they don’t become a distraction during camp.
[Chicago Tribune]
