Ryan Poles: Caleb Williams has work to do, but we have to plan for eventual extension
· Yahoo Sports
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams can't sign a contract extension until the 2027 offseason, but thoughts about it are already part of the long-term planning in Chicago.
Williams took a step forward in Ben Johnson's first year as the Bears' head coach and the team's trip to the divisional round after winning the NFC North showed the kind of success the team can have with strong quarterback play. While speaking to reporters at the Scouting Combine in Indianapolis this week, Bears General Manager Ryan Poles said that Williams still has more room to grow into the player the Bears want him to be but said that there's already work being done to make sure the Bears are positioned to keep him in the fold while building the rest of the roster.
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“Anyone that’s watched the league long enough knows that for quarterback play, it’s consistency,” Poles said, via Jason Lieser of the Chicago Sun-Times. “Can you stack years on top of each other? We still have steps to go. I don’t want to make it like he’s already [there]. He knows he’s got work to do. But if all of that falls into place, we have to understand how that changes our formula as we move forward. That’s a great thing to be on that path. I feel like we have a long-term quarterback solution. It makes me excited.”
Poles acknowledged that things are easier financially "when that quarterback isn’t taking up a massive piece of the cap," but added that he hopes "to pay a young quarterback" and it probably won't be too much longer before that background planning becomes the main priority in Chicago.