Caleb Williams makes feelings clear on immediately being compared to Patrick Mahomes

Caleb Williams has shown flashes of brilliance during his first two preseason games with the Chicago Bears, but the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft is pushing back on comparisons to Patrick Mahomes

Caleb Williams has drawn comparisons to Patrick Mahomes (
Image: Getty Images)

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has been making waves in his first two preseason games, but the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft is keen to distance himself from comparisons with top NFL signal-callers.

Williams got a second taste of NFL action on Saturday when the Bears took on the Cincinnati Bengals at Soldier Field. After another impressive performance, fans are already drawing parallels between the star rookie and three-time Super Bowl champion Patrick Mahomes.

However, speaking after the Bears’ 27-3 victory over the Bengals, Williams made it clear that while he appreciates the comparisons with Mahomes, his primary focus this season is on helping his team secure victories.

“It’s respect,” he said. “It’s cool and all, but I’m Caleb Williams. Patrick Mahomes is Patrick Mahomes. Tyreek Hill is Tyreek Hill. Much love to them and things like that – I’ve met ’em, talked to ’em both, things like that – but we’re here to win games for the Chicago Bears. Da Bears.”

Despite a slow start where Chicago stalled on three consecutive three-and-out drives in the first quarter, Williams managed to pull off two spectacular plays just before halftime.

As the second quarter wound down, Williams managed to escape from a collapsing pocket and launched an impeccable 45-yard pass on the move towards rookie wide receiver Rome Odunze. Even under heavy scrutiny from Bengals’ cornerback Josh Newton, the young receiver received the longest completion Williams had executed in his preseason appearances against Cincinnati and Buffalo Bills.

However, during the next play, despite some nippy footwork to bypass Bengals defensive end Justin Blazek, Williams fired a high-velocity pass at Odunze who was left unattended in the back right corner of the end zone. Unfortunately, it was ruled an incompletion since Odunze didn’t manage to keep both feet within bounds.

Patrick Mahomes is considered one of the best active quarterbacks in the NFL ( 
Image:
Getty Images)
But the Bears regained their stride almost instantly. In the space of roughly 10 seconds, Williams dodged attempted tackles from Bengals defensive linemen Cedric Johnson and Travis Bell, and then made a beeline towards the end zone along the sidelines making a cracking 7-yard score.

Williams concluded the game with solid stats: 6 out of 13 completed passes for 75 yards and no interceptions. Bears head coach Matt Eberflus praised his performance as a “professional day at quarterback.”

Online supporters quickly praised Williams for his American football showmanship, drawing comparisons with the style of Patrick Mahomes. In Saturday’s face-off against the Detroit Lions, the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback executed a striking behind-the-back pass to tight end Travis Kelce – a manoeuvre first spotted from the Bears’ main play-caller in training camp during the HBO series “Hard Knocks.”

Tyreek Hill, Miami Dolphins wide receiver and previous teammate of Mahomes at the Chiefs, teasingly paralleled his ex-quarterback with Williams, posting on X: “Caleb Williams so nice he remind me of …..”