The recent bombshell report from ESPN’s Seth Wickersham’s new book spotlighting Caleb Williams and his pre-draft process has shocked many around the Chicago Bears fanbase.
The talking point of all the sports talk shows today was about Wickersham’s reporting that Williams was trying to avoid being drafted by the Bears last year when they took him No. 1 overall, and now the question becomes if it is a distraction going into this year.
With new head coach Ben Johnson at the forefront of this team, not afraid to speak his mind, he quickly shot down any negatives between Williams and the franchise. One former NFL player who went through his own off-field drama, Manti Te’o also believes none of this report will be a distraction for Williams or the team this year.
During Friday’s edition of “Good Morning Football” on NFL Network, Te’o explained why this will be a non-factor going into the 2025 season.
“I think it’s not a distraction at all,” Te’o said. “One guy that I really love watching in the NFL, is probably one of the biggest faces in the NFL, and has a lot of distractions outside of himself with certain things his family has done which is Patrick Mahomes. He’s never himself been a distraction in the locker room. I don’t think in this instance that Caleb Williams is going to be a distraction. And I think sequence of events and time of events is importance in regards to these clippings. I just know based on when certain things happen, it creates a different narrative. He’s not saying he doesn’t want to play for the Bears after he was drafted by the Bears.”
Te’o’s comments are some of the most common sense takes to come out from analysts regarding the new narrative around Williams. All of the things that were reported in Wickersham’s book came before he went through his first full regular season, and while there was plenty of turbulence and downfall in his rookie season, the franchise has put plenty of new faces and pieces in place to take Williams, and the team as a whole, to the next level.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Manti Te’o explains why Caleb Williams report won’t be distraction for Bears
Reporting by Mike Pendleton, Bears Wire / Bears Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
