Bear Digest

The Bull's-Eye Already Being Placed on Caleb Williams' Back

Defensive linemen who face the Bears this season talk about going up against much-hyped quarterback Caleb Williams.

Gene Chamberlain

Rashan Gary and Titans defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons had something to say about facing Caleb Williams this season.
Rashan Gary and Titans defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons had something to say about facing Caleb Williams this season. / Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
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Let's just say it didn't quite meet the standard Justin Jones set when he trashed Green Bay Packers fans with expletives last offseason.

A few defensive linemen were baited by Roku host Rich Eisen on his show about facing Caleb Williams and they ran with it, or sort of jogged with it at a slow pace.

One was Green Bay Packers edge rusher Rashan Gary and the other was Tennessee Titans defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons, who is actually supposed to be one of the better trash talkers in the league--at least he says so.

He's no John Randle.

Gary was asked by Eisen about facing Williams Nov. 17.

It's after a bye, "...so we'll have some good tape on him," Eisen said.

The Packers won't be surprised at that point of the season by anything they see from Williams.

"Understanding of how the Bears want to run their offense through him, or if they’re going to be pass-heavy by that time or run-heavy by this time," Gary said. "So we're going to understand and have a better feel (for Williams) than what we would, you know, Week 1."

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Gary, who has 31 1/2 sacks in five seasons, really only had complimentary things to say of the Bears rookie, which would no doubt please Packers coach Matt LaFleur. There's no sense providing bulletin board material in June.

"Great arm, great vision, you know, right now we've just got to still be able to contain him and still play our ball," Gary said.

Simmons was rather subdued, as well. The Titans have the Bears in the opener at Soldier Field.

However, he did point out Williams' habit of painting his nails and can't wait to bring this up in the game—like Williams hasn't heard anything about this before.

"It's going to be one of those games," Simmons said. "Especially, he probably gets smack-talked to (by) his teammate right now.

"It's going to be the first game of the season. The guy that's coming to Chicago, all the hype is going to be around him, of course."

Simmons, who has 26 1/2 sacks in five seasons, believes the Bears will come into the game looking past the Titans.

The Bears won seven games last year and the Titans six.

"A game like Chicago, I'm sure they're thinking we're about to get beat bad," Simmons said. "So that makes me talk more smack and boosts me up a little more. It makes me be in a different mode, as well. So I'll be in a different mode that game."

Simmons thinks the hype building around Williams will make the Titans seem like an afterthought and they'll play off of this.

"I get it," he told Eisen. "You got a first-round pick, Caleb Williams, himself, which is a great player.

"Watching a couple games when he was at USC, you know, he's a hell of a player but this is a different league. I'm excited to play him the first game."

Simmons called it nothing personal about Williams and didn't even say he wanted to be the one to welcome Williams to the NFL with a big hit until set up for it by Eisen.

"That's my mindset," he said. "I don't care who it may be. It could be Tom Brady. First game of the season, I want to go out there and set the tone not just for him but for who we are trying to be as a defense and as a team in Tennessee.

"But like you said, it is one of them games where it's his first real NFL game. I'm not out to hurt no one but at the same time our goal is to get to him and, like (Eisen) said, 'welcome to the NFL."

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.