Southern Cal quarterback Caleb Williams holds up his jersey after being selected by the Chicago Bears as the No. 1 pick in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft on Thursday night in Detroit.
Southern Cal quarterback Caleb Williams holds up his jersey after being selected by the Chicago Bears as the No. 1 pick in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft on Thursday night in Detroit.
Southern California quarterback Caleb Williams was selected No. 1 in the 2024 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears, as the expected became official when commissioner Roger Goodell made the announcement on Thursday in Detroit.
"I'm ready," Williams said Wednesday in a public appearance on the eve of the draft. "I did dream of this. I set my goals. I went after it. I got here."
Williams won the 2022 Heisman Trophy and is the third quarterback drafted in the first round by the Bears since 2017, following Mitchell Trubisky (second overall, 2017) and Justin Fields (11th, 2021).
General manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus arrived on the scene after those failed or incomplete QB experiments.
Their lack of success fed Poles' plan to find his way to a franchise passer. Quarterbacks have been selected No. 1 overall in six of the past seven drafts.
The Bears received the No. 1 pick in this draft as a result of a March 2023 trade with the Carolina Panthers.
Chicago traded the No. 1 pick in last year's draft for Carolina's original selection in 2023 and more, including the Panthers' first-rounder in 2024. After plummeting to the bottom of the NFL standings last season, it was Carolina that landed the No. 1 pick, which was relayed to the Bears to complete the trade.
With the stage set, Poles slow-played a decision on Fields' future but ultimately opted for a reset to execute his vision of finding the franchise a long-term answer at quarterback.
Williams passed for 3,633 yards, 30 touchdowns and five interceptions for the Trojans in 2023. He passed for 4,537 yards, 42 touchdowns with five interceptions in 2022.
The No. 2 pick, by the Washington Commanders, was LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels.
