The projected No. 1 pick for the upcoming draft, Caleb Williams, is highly likely to land in Chicago. It got even clearer when the Bears decided to trade their starting shot-caller to the Steelers. However, not everyone likes the idea of the former USC Trojans star joining hands with the club, with former NFL legends like Robert Griffin and Deion Sanders urging Caleb to pass over Chicago. While Griffin’s issue was with the organization that, in his view, didn’t treat Fields right, Coach Prime feels Williams, hailing from Washington and playing his college ball in California, won’t be able to adjust to and handle the bone-chilling winters of Chicago.
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Sanders expressed a similar concern for his son, Shedeur, who plans to enter the draft in 2025. However, sports analyst Chris Broussard disagreed with Prime’s take. During the recent episode of First Things First, Broussard stated that while he agrees with the position that playing in colder climates is harder for every QB, and some players can’t handle that, he also believes if a quarterback is capable, is seen as a generational talent, and is mentally tough by many, there is no way you are letting something like cold weather come in your way to fulfill your potential and achieve greatness.
Broussard backed his claims, noting that both Aaron Rodgers from California and Brett Favre from Mississippi played in Green Bay, a place known for extreme weather conditions. Moreover, Mahomes, hailing from Texas, has settled well in the harsh winters of Kansas City. Eli Manning, from Louisiana, moved to the Big Apple — and Brady, too, from California, went to Boston.
“Now there is no doubt that playing in cold weather is harder, but are there some QBs that can’t handle it? Maybe.” Broussard said. “But if you’re that guy, you are going to be fine. I don’t know if Deion is questioning if Caleb can handle it but Aaron Rodgers is from California and played in Green Bay — Brett Favre is from Mississippi — and played in Green Bay — and Patrick Mahomes is from Texas, and plays in Kansas City and Eli Manning from Louisiana played in New York City. So if you are that guy, go ahead and get it done in the element.”
While Broussard voiced his two cents, it’s also worth noting that co-host Nick Wright feels Brady’s ability to perform well in the snowy conditions is something that separated him from other QBs like Peyton Manning.
Nick Wright Reveals Why He Leaned on Tom Brady Over Peyton Manning
It’s no secret that Tom Brady and Peyton Manning had one of the fiercest rivalries among the last generation of quarterbacks. While Manning outplayed Brady during the last few postseason games of his career, Brady ultimately surpassed him as a GOAT when he won 3 more Super Bowls after Peyton retired in 2016, becoming the first player to win more than 5 Lombardy Trophies.
According to Nick Wright, another factor separates the 7-time Super Bowl winner from the Sheriff. The sportscaster expressed that while Manning has better numbers, won more MVPs, and even defeated his counterpart in the last three playoff games in which they faced each other, it was Brady, who performed consistently better while playing in the snow, as the 5-time MVP played the majority of his career under a dome.
“I respect cold weather quarterbacks a touch more. So when Brady vs Manning thing was a debate, you know before Brady added all those 3 Super Bowls at the end but like Peyton retired the Super Bowls in that moment were 4-2 but Peyton had better numbers, the more MVPs, and had beaten him in the end in the last 3 playoff appearance they had played,” Nick said. “Part of me that made me lean Brady was Brady did it in the elements forever and Peyton had the dome.”
So in a way, it can be very well argued that if the guy from California can perform in the snow, so can Caleb Williams if he wants to achieve a similar level of success.
The stage is all set for him to make his mark in the league and prove it to everyone who has questioned his mental toughness and attitude. Caleb is currently performing at his Pro Day after declining to perform at the Combine. The Bears GM Ryan Poles and HC Matt Eberflus are currently there to give their final seal of approval. Chicago has already invested substantially more in roster building for him than they ever did for Fields. The season should be exciting, and many feel that given the squad, they should at least make the playoffs just like the Texans did with CJ Stroud.
