Caleb Williams vs J.J. McCarthy stats: Which rookie QB had better preseason debut?

Caleb Williams and J.J. McCarthy both took to the field for their first NFL snaps, albeit in preseason, and already people want to know who did better. This was after all the battle of the two rookie quarterback starters of the NFC North, the rivalry between a Heisman Trophy winner and an NCAA champion. This head-to-head matchup has the potential to be the defining pairing for the league for years to come.

Therefore, when both head coaches chose to give their rookies a chance to sample the preseason vibes on the field before the infinitely tougher regular season games, the narrative was already set. These are two first-round picks of the 2024 NFL draft who have already been established as starters. They have nowhere to hide, and they will be evaluated and judged right away and right now.

Caleb Williams vs J.J. McCarthy stats: Who fared better?

Even though both Caleb Williams and J.J. McCarthy featured in their first games of the 2024 preseason, the approaches taken by both coaches were different.

Bears coach Matt Eberflus, who had also withheld his quarterback from the Hall of Fame game, chose a more cautious strategy. He allowed the rookie under his charge to lead the team for a couple of drives before withdrawing the player, happy with what he had seen.

Caleb Williams led two drives against the Buffalo Bills, one for 58 yards and the other for 84 yards. Both led to field goals, perhaps highlighting the need for him to learn to be more clinical in the red zone.

But the rookie nevertheless made a good impression, completing four passes out of seven and accumulating 95 passing yards. He did not throw either a touchdown or an interception, but his 13.6 yards per attempt were an encouraging sign. He ended with a 101.8 passer rating.

Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell chose a different approach as he gave the quarterback under his charge a more extended workout against the Las Vegas Raiders. And what that allowed the Michigan alumnus to show is not just his passing ability and his understanding of the game, but also his mental strength.

J.J. McCarthy bounced back after throwing an early interception to record two touchdown passes by the time the game ended. He had 17 passing attempts and completed 11 of them. He had a total of 188 passing yards and recorded a commendable 11.1 yards per attempt. For his efforts, he finished with a passer rating of 116.8.

Therefore, purely in terms of quarterback play, and if we take their passer ratings as a numeric equivalent encompassing their overall performance, J.J. McCarthy was slightly better than Caleb Williams. But this is too simplistic an argument.

The Bears quarterback was in for a shorter length of time, and had his Vikings counterpart been withdrawn similarly, he would have finished with worse numbers having given up a pick towards the beginning of the match.

Caleb Williams could also point out that J.J. McCarthy threw his two touchdown passes when the Raiders were throwing on their backup players and struggled against their stronger defensive front when the game started. Ultimately, these outings were good for them to get under their belts but didn't mean much in the long run.

There is every chance that Jared Goff and Jordan Love, the two established starters in the NFC North with NFL experience, will still have the Detroit Lions and the Green Bay Packers top at the end of the season.

Both Williams and McCarthy are being thrown against stiff competition without getting the chance to sit behind a veteran. A better judgment of who was better might not even come at the end of the 2024 season, and we might have to wait a couple of years before we decide.