Caleb Williams: Buy or Sell?
In Chicago, across the League, and around the Hobby there was no hotter rookie heading into the 2024 NFL season than Chicago Bears rookie Caleb Williams. The quarterback from USC, who was drafted first overall, was not your everyday number one pick. In some circles he was considered a generational talent.
Handed the keys to the kingdom from day one, Williams justified the hype when the Bears quickly rattled off five straight wins. The only problem? Four were meaningless preseason matchups, and the fifth, Chicago's regular season opener, may have gone the Bears' way more in spite of Williams than because of him. The rookie signal caller went an unimpressive 14 of 29 for a Derek Carr-like 93 yards and no touchdowns.
Nine game into the season, the Bears' record sits at 4-5. Even with half the season remaining, a playoff berth seems an impossibility. Whether Chicago's poor showing falls on the coaching staff, the porous offensive line, or Williams himself, there is no question that Williams, at least to this point, has not lived up to the hype. To make matters worse, the quarterback the Bears passed on, Jayden Daniels, has turned one of the NFL's worst teams into one of its best, playing absolutely out of his mind and setting the league on fire.
The question then, for card collectors looking at Caleb Williams, is buy or sell. Will the young quarterback eventually turn things around and emerge as one of the League's top stars, or will his career trajectory look more like that of his predecessor, Justin Fields, now a backup in Pittsburgh? The reality, of course, is that things could go either way. That said, here are some reasons to remain bullish on Caleb.
Pulling a potential $30,000ish 1 of 1 Rookie Card!
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- Whatever the results so far, Caleb's skill set is unquestionably elite.
- The Bears are committed to their rookie QB and will keep providing the reps he needs to develop.
- Though it's easy to forget, even Peyton Manning went 3-13 in his first full season, but collectors who stuck with him have absolutely no regrets.
- Caleb's early setbacks offer what may be a rare window for collectors to "buy the dip."
On the other side of the coin, there may be only one reason to give up on Williams, but it's a biggie. At the end of the day, the Bears are still the Bears, a team that arguably hasn't had a superstar quarterback in almost 80 years.
In other words, it may not be enough for Caleb Williams to develop into a generational talent. He may just need once-in-a-century success to deliver the goods for the Bears...and the Hobby.
Jason A. Schwartz is a collectibles expert whose work can be found regularly at SABR Baseball Cards, Hobby News Daily, and 1939Bruins.com. His collection of Hank Aaron baseball cards and memorabilia is currently on exhibit at the Atlanta History Center, and his collectibles-themed artwork is on display at the Honus Wagner Museum and PNC Park.