The Chicago Bears need to get the Caleb Williams decision right. And Michael Wilbon verbalized just how much pressure the franchise is under.
Wilbon joined The Rich Eisen Show this week. During the interview, the Chicago native and longtime ESPN talent suggested the Washington Commanders should trade up to No. 1 in the NFL Draft to make Caleb Williams their hometown hero.
It’s been called the biggest decision in the history of Chicago sports — the @PTI co-host on the what #DaBears will and should do with the No. 1 pick in the #NFLDraft:#NFL pic.twitter.com/gQIG7a4E9L
— Rich Eisen Show (@RichEisenShow) March 6, 2024
“If they went to the Bears and said, ‘Look, we’re gonna blow you away with an offer.’ The Bears don’t listen?” Wilbon asked. “Do we know they’ve already decided Caleb Williams is their guy no matter what? We know that?
“Again, I’m not reporting this stuff out, that’s not what I do any more. But I also know some people who work for the Bears, and who played for the Bears, and who wear gold jackets from their careers with the Bears. So, I’m not entirely out of touch with the people who represent, emotionally, the Chicago Bears. Rich, this is the most divisive sports issue in the history of Chicago.”
“Oh, God yes,” Wilbon added after Eisen acted with surprise to the bold declaration. “There’s nothing like this. And I’m not boots on the ground every day, I spend most of my time in Chicago after the Finals and in the six months between June and November. But I still have a residence there…There’s nothing as divisive as this.”
Calling whether to draft a quarterback the “most divisive sports issue in the history of Chicago” is bold, but it’s probably true in the case of Williams and the Bears. There have been more controversial sports decisions in Chicago, but they weren’t necessarily divisive. Jerry Reinsdorf’s decision to move on from Michael Jordan by breaking up the Chicago Bulls was controversial, but it wasn’t divisive. The city wanted Jordan back.
The Bears are staring at the ability to draft the best quarterback prospect in over a decade, while also knowing they can opt to keep Justin Fields and trade the pick for a potentially historic return. Reasonable arguments can be made for both.
Williams seems like the easy choice to some, while Wilbon made his case for keeping Fields and trading the No. 1 pick to Washington. Or maybe, Wilbon was just trying to help out some of his friends who work for the Bears by hyping their desire to keep Fields in an effort to boost his trade value.
