Caleb Williams' teammate rips NFL for snubbing Bears QB as Rookie of the Year nominee

Caleb Williams entered the NFL with much hype in 2024 as the Chicago Bears' new starting quarterback. But after an initial 4-2 run, the team collapsed, losing 10 straight games after the bye week before getting a bittersweet season sendoff win at the Green Bay Packers.

He finished with 351 completions for 3,541 yards and 20 touchdowns against six interceptions, but it was not enough to get him a nomination for Offensive Rookie of the Year alongside fellow first-round passers Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix. And one of his teammates is unhappy with it.

On Tuesday, safety Jaquan Brisker posted this on his social media account:

"Why Caleb not on here?"

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Rick Telander: Caleb Williams must be quicker, more alert if he is to succeed in NFL

It can be inferred that one of the main reasons behind Caleb Williams' inability to win as a rookie was his slowness and hesitation when studying which routes he should take – not helped by the poor quality of the offensive line. For instance, he took 2.92 seconds before releasing the ball – the eighth-longest among starters in the league.

That made him susceptible to sacks, of which he took a league-worst 68 for a cumulative loss of 466 yards, For comparison, Peyton Manning led the league in picks as a rookie with 28 but ate only 22 sacks for a cumulative loss of 109 yards. Meanwhile, in just this season alone, the Denver Broncos' Bo Nix was intercepted twice as much but sacked only 24 times for a loss of 198 yards.

It proved to be costly for the Bears, as summarized in two plays.

During the season opener against the Tennessee Titans, Williams attempted to maneuver his way out of the pass rush, just as he had done in college, and was instead brought down by Sebastian Joseph-Day for a 19-yard loss, eventually stalling the drive and causing a punt. The Titans scored a touchdown on the ensuing drive, although the Bears eventually won 24-17.

Then, during overtime of a Week 12 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings, he lost 12 yards on a sack by Jonathan Greenard on the second play of the first drive. The Bears were forced to punt, which the Vikings punished with a walk-off field goal.

And according to the Chicago Sun Times' Rick Telander, it is an issue that he has to address and mend if he wants to succeed in the NFL:

"Speed is what he must learn, download, overcome. As the Bears search for a new head coach, this point should be paramount. Somebody — whether it’s the new coach himself, his offensive coordinator, his quarterbacks coach or another assistant — must help young Williams fully embrace the concept of 'fast.'"

Potential candidates for this job have included Pete Carroll and Mike McCarthy, who is now a free agent after the Dallas Cowboys declined to extend him on Monday.