If there is one guy who knows a thing or two about a Championship Quarterback, it’s certainly Bill Belichick. Earlier today, Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye became the first three picks of this season’s NFL draft. The trio have been the flavour of the NFL world for months with many predicting these three to have a Hall of Fame level career. However, Bill Belichick disagrees.
As part of the panel of the Pat McAfee Show, Bill Belichick reasoned that what makes a Championship-winning QB is consistency. He acknowledged that Caleb Williams and Drake Maye are incredibly talented. But Belichick argued that they haven’t been as consistent and experienced with their performances as they could have been. Both Maye and Williams had a stark drop in performances last season after an incredible 2022 winning the ACC PoTY and Heismann, respectively. The former Patriots HC thus opined that young guys like Caleb and Maye have a lot to develop and prove before being thrust into lofty standards.
“Well, I think with Maye and Williams, you have two guys who are really talented. As Mel said, you know, Caleb had a good year a year ago when he won the Heisman Trophy. Not as good this year. Drake was, you know, ACC player of the year two years ago. Had less of a year this year. I think you see guys who are young that need a lot of development.”
On the other hand, he praised QBs like Michael Penix Jr., Bo Nix, and second-overall pick Jayden Daniels for their consistency throughout their college career. Penix especially as he is one of the oldest prospects in the draft. But what about JJ McCarthy who is coming in a year early? Belichick opined that JJ is in a good space because he spent a lot of time in prep school, unlike others. His final assessment of the class was talents like Caleb and Drake need to prove and learn a lot in the NFL which they missed in college, unlike other QB talents.
“You look at Pennix. You know, he’s had a whole career in Indiana and then Washington. Bo Nix, Auburn, and Oregon. Jayden Daniels. Jayden Daniels, you know, Arizona State. He went back to school, had a great year this year, won the Heisman Trophy. So those guys that have had a full career, McCarthy coming out a little bit early, but he had the year in prep school. Like those guys have had, you know, good full college careers. And I think they’re just ahead of these kids. who have a lot of talent, but they really need a couple more years. They’re not going to get it in college. They’re going to get it in the NFL.”
Bill Belichick makes a valid point. Drake Maye and Caleb Williams have been over-hyped despite some chinks in the armor. Their rookie season is going to be pivotal as it will display the pedigree they possess as they navigate challenges in their rookie season.
Challenges Lay Ahead For Drake Maye and Caleb Williams in 2024
A few days ago, NFL Insider Charles Robinson revealed that NFL teams are nitpicking Caleb Williams’ inability to stay true to the offensive structure. Generational talents like Caleb and Drake have the special ability to dictate plays themselves when their offensive line crumbles. However, it’s been observed that Caleb has been a bit more self-reliant than required. A common challenge that a lot of rookies face in the transition from college to the NFL is the level of competition.
The NFL has the best of the best and Caleb’s tendency for making individual plays and not following the game plan can be detrimental to the Bears. The Trojans alum needs to understand that the defense in the NFL is light years ahead of the competition he had in college. The same goes for Drake Maye. From physicality to speed to tactics, the duo’s flashy playstyle won’t work here. There is a method to the madness in the NFL and the duo needs to adapt to that.
Johnny Manziel had once revealed how a few bad games in his rookie season crushed his morale. Drake Maye and Caleb Williams have also had a similar trajectory to Johnny with stellar college performances and insane media hype. The duo need to mentally tune themselves to calm down and back themselves in adversity. Ideally, their success lies on how well and quickly they adapt their natural game to the NFL pace.
NFL QBs are expected to read defenses, recognize rapid blitzes, make passes, and evade pressure in extremely quick time. While Drake and Caleb have shown their ability to do that, executing this same set of actions against the world’s best guards, cornerbacks and tackles is a different game altogether. All said, the duo has done half the job thanks to their incredible talent. The rest depends on how well they adapt mentally and physically.
