Caleb Williams seemed to get a pass for not living up to the hype of being a generational quarterback during his rookie campaign. From a shaky interior line to substandard coaching, there were enough cracks in the Chicago Bears' infrastructure to excuse some of the USC products' early struggles.
The organization went out and hired offensive guru Ben Johnson, made numerous improvements up front, and drafted a pair of pass catchers in Colston Loveland and Luther Burden III to help put their young signal-caller in an ideal position to succeed.
Yet some early concerning buzz out of training camp has one prominent national talking head casting doubt over Williams' NFL future.
On a recent episode of his show "The Herd," Colin Cowherd blasted the former Heisman winner and made a bold proclamation.
"Some of his OTA issues resurfaced—not getting the play right, looking disorganized, not getting the footwork right," Cowherd said. "Two things can be true: he's a huge talent, but his critics are valid. We're going to know by early October if this guy can play. This team is built to win right now."
Although it might be premature to set a date for when there needs to be a visual improvement in Williams' game, his football acumen is sorely lacking at times.
The 23-year-old's most glaring weakness is an inability to understand when to get rid of the ball and how to navigate a muddled pocket. He often tries to spin away from pressure, but that doesn't work in the NFL unless you're a generational athlete like Lamar Jackson or Jayden Daniels.
If Williams continues to kill drives by taking boneheaded sacks and putting the rock in harm's way early in the season, there will be concerns about his ability to succeed as a pro.
As Cowherd alluded to, he has all the desirable traits of a future MVP, but that's irrelevant if he's unwilling to improve his craft and learn the position.