Danny Parkins knows there are plenty of Caleb Williams doubters in Chicago.
The Chicago Bears are expected to select the former Heisman winner and USC quarterback with the No. 1 pick in the upcoming NFL Draft and Parkins admits some fans wonder if that is the right move.
The co-host of the Parkins & Spiegel Show on Chicago’s 670 The Score appeared on the Awful Announcing Podcast this week and talked with host Brandon Contes about the Bears’ draft strategy, Williams’ potential, and more.
Parkins said he understands some fans’ skepticism about Williams, but believes he can become the franchise quarterback the Bears have been searching for, through one flop after another.
“There’s definitely some spurned lover cynicism here, like ‘Prove it to me,'” Parkins said. He then went on to list a handful of former Bears quarterbacks who were once touted but did not live up to expectations. He named Mitch Trubisky, Jay Cutler, Cade McNown, Rex Grossman and Justin Fields, who had flashes of brilliance on sub-par Bears teams the past three seasons but ultimately was traded away this offseason to open the door for Williams.
“So there’s definitely some people who are taking a wait-and-see approach, but they (the Bears) have also never been in this spot,” Parkins said. “I mean, it’s a No. 1 pick quarterback, top prospect coming in to a team that won seven games last season. … Like, if Caleb Williams is as good as everyone says he’s going to be, the Bears are gonna win a lot of games immediately.”
Parkins admitted there were excellent arguments to be made that the Bears should have kept Fields and traded that No. 1 pick for yet more draft capital.
“There absolutely were a lot of people who thought they should have stayed with Justin Fields,” Parkins said. “I thought this was pretty much a no-brainer from the minute they qualified for the No. 1 pick.”
So Parkins’ message to Bears fans is simple: Forget the past quarterback disappointments and the debate on draft strategy. And forget the manufactured controversy on X/Twitter involving Williams painting his nails.
Instead, Parkins says fans need to believe in Williams.
“So (the Bears) are not concerned, I’m not concerned, paint your nails, do whatever the hell you want, just throw for 4,500 yards and 35 touchdowns and win 12 games,” Parkins said.
“That’s all I think anybody who’s reasonable cares about.”
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