The Bears and 'The Beast': Caleb Williams scouting report, prospects to watch at No. 9 (2024)

The Chicago Bears have only four picks in the 2024 NFL Draft.

They also have two picks in the top nine, will take the best prospect — and possibly the top defensive prospect — and are in position to transform the building with what they do on April 25.

It’s not only Caleb Williams, but it of course starts at No. 1, and with colleague Dane Brugler’s draft guide “The Beast” available now, it’s a great time to add to your draft research.

Here are five takeaways from this annual must-read:

1. Caleb Williams fun facts

We already know a lot about Williams, the top prospect in the draft, the expected No. 1 pick and future Bears quarterback. That’s the consequence of being the No. 2 quarterback recruit in the country, a freshman All-American, a Heisman winner and the most famous college player in a long time.

But Brugler is also a legend because of the details he uncovers. Here are a few fun tidbits about Williams:

• In Pop Warner, Williams played running back and linebacker and “often played up several levels because of his athleticism and physicality (earned the nickname ‘Bobby Boucher’ after Adam Sandler’s character in ‘The Waterboy’).”

• “Williams started his own charity, the Caleb Cares Foundation, which focuses on combatting bullying and addressing mental health.”

• “Didn’t throw an interception on third or fourth down at USC (199 pass attempts).”

• “Accounted for more plays of 20-plus yards (134) and 50-plus yards (20) than any other college player over the last two seasons.”

• “He led the FBS in touchdowns (120) and “wow” plays over the last three years, but he also led the country in fumbles (33) over that same span.”

Caleb Houdini pic.twitter.com/nigsC16gSD

— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) September 3, 2023

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And here’s Brugler’s summary of Williams: “Overall, Williams needs to be more consistent working on-schedule from the pocket, but you live with the hiccups because the positives are special with his dynamic passing skills and instinctive ability to create. Though stylistically he is like a really impressive karaoke-style version of Patrick Mahomes, he is truly unique as a playmaker.”

The full Williams report is 1,400 words. This draft cycle has been different, and the Justin Fields element added to that, but it’s hard to read through the report and not come away realizing what a unique opportunity the Bears have at the top.

2. Best defensive prospects in the draft

One of the first things I do when I open Brugler’s draft guide is scroll to the end to see his Top 100 draft board. Williams is No. 1, and it’s very interesting to see three receivers in his top six — Marvin Harrison Jr. at No. 2, Malik Nabers at No. 3 and Rome Odunze ranked sixth.

The possibility of taking the draft’s top defensive player has to be intriguing for Bears general manager Ryan Poles, and especially coach Matt Eberflus. If the top eight of the draft includes four quarterbacks, the three receivers and offensive tackle Joe Alt (ranked No. 5), that sets the Bears up to start a run on defense.

But Brugler’s top two defensive players are cornerbacks. The Bears won’t go in that direction. Then at No. 14 comes Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner. Texas defensive tackle Byron Murphy is ranked 16th and Florida State edge rusher Jared Verse is 20th.

There are a few ways to look at that. The Bears, along with the 31 other teams, have a big board that will differ from Brugler’s. If we use Brugler’s, though, value can be had by trading back a few spots and still selecting someone who can affect the passer, something the Bears were at the bottom of the league at last season.

A few years from now, it won't be surprising when DT Byron Murphy (NT in this clip) is the best pro from this #Texas defense.

Initial quickness, vertical push, body flexibility. pic.twitter.com/RuvwjgI3zr

— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) December 19, 2023

Here are Brugler’s summaries of Turner, Verse and Murphy:

• “Turner is a long, explosive edge rusher with the body twitch, hand usage and play strength to leverage blocks and be disruptive in multiple ways. He has the freaky tools to be a potential impact player in the NFL who should continue to improve as his body and rush attack mature.”

• “When he channels his relentless energy, Verse is as disruptive as anyone in this class, because of his explosive get-off, power through his frame and NFL-quality hand use. His physical traits and competitive football temperament give him a high floor as an NFL starter (reminiscent of eight-year NFL veteran Dante Fowler).”

• “Murphy doesn’t have ideal length, but his rare combination of lower-body twitch, natural leverage and power throughout his frame sets him apart. With his disruptive energy, both as a pass rusher and versus the run, he projects as an impact starter who can play shaded nose or three-technique, similar to Grady Jarrett.”

3. How do the top O-linemen stack up athletically?

The Bears should keep pumping up J.J. McCarthy to anyone who asks so that the Michigan quarterback can go in the top eight. Heck, throw Michael Penix Jr. in there, too. The more the merrier, setting Poles up at defensive line, wide receiver … or offensive tackle.

The team decided to trade Fields and draft someone they believe is an upgrade, with the bonus of having him on a rookie contract. The same thing could happen at left tackle, where Braxton Jones has started the past two seasons.

#NotreDame LT Joe Alt was really good last year, but he's been even better so far in 2023. His balance, hand control and recovery are A+ traits.

Really fun watching him get better and better and better. pic.twitter.com/mBX8Pa0Iuq

— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) September 28, 2023

Notre Dame’s Alt, Penn State’s Olu Fashanu, Alabama’s JC Latham and Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga are all in Brugler’s top 17. We know that Poles favors athletic offensive linemen, and all four performed well at the combine or pro days. Brugler’s guide is a great resource for testing numbers, so let’s see how the top tackle prospects measure up to Jones and right tackle Darnell Wright.

Wright said he dropped 16 pounds ahead of his rookie season, so if Latham were atop the Bears’ board, he’d likely be asked to do the same. Poles wants his linemen to be fleet of foot. Alt’s measurables are incredibly impressive, but he’s not expected to be available at No. 9. Fashanu and Fuaga don’t have arms as long as Jones, but Wright didn’t have 34-plus-inch arms, either. However, he’s a dynamic athlete.

Duke’s Graham Barton, who visited the Bears last week, is the only center with a true first-round grade from Brugler. He ran a 1.68 10-yard split on his 40-yard dash and a ridiculous RAS (relative athletic score) of 9.99. He could be a luxury pick after the Bears traded for Ryan Bates, who’s expected to start at center, but the Bears could identify a center (or guard) for the long term in this draft. Wisconsin’s Tanor Bortolini, whose 10-yard split was 1.68 seconds (the Bears have drafted offensive linemen with quick 10-yard splits), is Brugler’s fourth-ranked center with a third- to fourth-round grade.

4. Round 3 receivers to keep an eye on

Based on Brugler’s draft board, Poles should be ecstatic if any of the top three wideouts get to No. 9. That Odunze is No. 3 at receiver but prospect No. 6 overall, says a lot about this class. It also is a deep class, with 17 receivers in Brugler’s top 100.

No other position has more than 12 players ranked in the top 100. Last year, 14 receivers were in the top 100 and in 2022, 13 made it to the final draft board.

If the three top receivers are taken — or if the Bears prefer a lineman and trust they can find a quality wideout on Friday night — we should look at Brugler’s receivers in that third-round range. The Bears are scheduled to pick 75th.

He has Washington’s Ja’Lynn Polk 74th, South Carolina’s Xavier Legette 76th, Virginia’s Malik Washington 90th and North Carolina’s Tez Walker 93rd.

It’s not the perfect metric to use as a standard, but the two wide receivers Poles has selected had outstanding 40 times. Velus Jones Jr. ran a 4.31 and Tyler Scott clocked in at 4.37 seconds.

Legette ran a 4.39 40, Washington a 4.47 and Walker 4.36 seconds.

Official 40-yard dash times WRs:

4.34 – Adonai Mitchell 👀
4.38 – Jacob Cowing
4.39 – Ladd McConkey, Anthony Gould, Xavier Legette
4.41 – Troy Franklin
4.42 – Jha'Quan Jackson
4.43 – Bub Means, Tulu Griffin
4.44 – Cornelius Johnson, Ryan Flournoy
4.45 – Jermain Burton

— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) March 2, 2024

In our Bears mock draft 2.0, I went with Legette in Round 3. Here’s Brugler’s summary: “Legette needs to continue developing his route proficiency and tempo, but his film gives off DK Metcalf vibes, and he has the explosive speed and physicality to be a matchup weapon. He should be an immediate contributor on special teams before competing for starting reps outside.”

If that Metcalf comparison is a popular one, Bears offensive coordinator Shane Waldron may have ideas for someone like Legette in his offense after working with Metcalf in Seattle.

5. Prospects exemplifying H.I.T.S.

We are in Year 3 of the Eberflus system, one that values hustle, intensity, takeaways and playing smart. Here’s an unscientific selection of five players who have details in their scouting reports that would make it a seamless transition to the “HITS” philosophy.

LSU WR Brian Thomas Jr. (No. 15 overall): “Put some impressive blocking efforts on tape (see his full-field hustle on Jayden Daniels’ long run against Florida in 2023).”

Florida State edge Jared Verse (No. 20): “Never feels like he is out of the play because of outstanding hustle and effort.”

Illinois DT Johnny Newton (No. 28): “Can’t leave him unblocked backside, because he will chase it down every time with relentless hustle.”

Florida State DT Braden Fiske (No. 71): “Plays with a worker-bee attitude and his motor doesn’t have an off switch … teammates rave about his competitive nature and the way he maxes out his ability during the week and in games (Jared Verse: “He’s one of the only people I’ve met who can meet my intensity.” If you know Verse, this is a tremendous compliment).”

North Carolina State LB Payton Wilson (No. 88): “Elite on-field energy with plenty of chase-down plays and hustle production on tape … extremely passionate in both practice and games and only knows one speed.”

(Photo: Meg Oliphant / Getty Images)