Cowherd: Caleb Williams Camp Denies Rumor QB Is Anti-Bears Ahead of 2024 NFL Draft

While rumors have suggested that potential No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams doesn't want to play for the Chicago Bears, his camp says otherwise.

During Friday's episode of The Herd, host Colin Cowherd said he received a call from Williams' camp saying that they "don't want to be painted as anti-Chicago and we don't want to be painted as anti-Bear."

Cowherd's comments come after he suggested on Thursday that Williams does not want to be drafted by the Bears this spring.

"I do think it's possible that Washington trades up and Chicago allows Washington to trade up. Because Caleb and his group do not want to go to Chicago," Cowherd said. "He's from the D.C. area. I think Dan Quinn is considered. The big concern for Caleb Williams, and you have to admit this, where you land matters. Chicago has never developed a star quarterback."

This rumor has been circulating for months.

However, when Williams declared for the 2024 draft last month, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport wrote that the USC product "enters the process excited for whoever ends up selecting him," indicating that he would be fine with playing in Chicago.

Chicago's decision on whether to draft Williams will be franchise-altering.

If the Bears opt to select the 2022 Heisman winner, that would all but surely spell the end of Justin Fields' time in the Windy City as they would likely trade him over the spring in hopes of adding to their draft asset stockpile.

Chicago selected Fields 11th overall in the 2021 draft. While he made strides as a passer during the 2023 campaign, the Bears still went 5-8 in his 13 starts and missed the playoffs for the third straight season.

For the Bears to select Williams and start over at quarterback, they'd have to be pretty confident in the USC product's ability to become a franchise signal-caller.

If the Bears end up not feeling confident in Williams leading up to the draft, they could continue to develop Fields and give him a wide receiver who is sure to impress at the next level in fellow Ohio State product Marvin Harrison Jr.

If they went that route, it's possible they could trade the No. 1 pick, still land Harrison and also address another area of need in the process by landing an additional first-round selection.