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Caleb Williams shares his expectations on the new era expected to begin for the Chicago Bears
Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Bears are mere days away from making these official and ushering in a new era of Bears football with a new star prospect leading the way.

On Thursday, the Bears are all but expected to draft USC quarterback Caleb Williams with the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. 

Williams' arrival in Chicago will be filled immediately with high expectations heading into a city that for so long has longed for consistent success. Williams hopes to be the answer for the city of Chicago as the team's next franchise quarterback.

Prior to the 2024 NFL Draft later this week, Williams sat down and talked about his football career and his expectations on the Pivot podcast last week. The interview was captivating, not only to hear about his story, but to see and hear how Williams carries himself as a person, player, and teammate.

Williams' goals are clear. He wants to win. Just as much if not more than the entire city of Chicago. He strives to be successful in the league and get the Bears back to the mountain top as soon as possible.

"If that's the plan is for the Bears draft me, the plan is to go as far as you can possibly go, all the way to February," Williams explained. "If they draft me, my plan is to go work my a** off, get after it, get into the playbook really heavily, handle things the way things need to be handled... and get as close as I can to February."

Williams is one of the best quarterback prospects to enter the draft in recent memory and if he plays up to his expectations, he could definitely achieve that feat. In his eyes, Williams is aiming to become one of the best quarterbacks of the modern era, joining the likes of Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes, and Tom Brady.

"To get to that point and to get to where they were by winning Super Bowls, being MVPs, or throwing these crazy passes and things like that is where I want to be," Williams said. "I want to win Super Bowls, I want to be up there with those guys and compete versus them."

To make Bears fans even more excited about his potential in Chicago, Williams envisions himself remaining in Chicago for years to come after being selected with the top pick in the draft in order to help revive the city and maintain that level of success.

"I love [Los Angeles], L.A. was great, now that I want to play in a place for 20 years... I want a place that loves ball." Williams said. "That's all I've heard about Chicago so far which is exciting for me... and something I'm looking forward to embracing. That's a city to light up and bring back and make game days fun and enjoyable."

Despite the draft not being until Thursday and Williams not officially being on the team yet, he's already started the install process during his visit with the team and has even gotten to know some of his future teammates.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Bears had a unusual process with their meetings with Williams and allowed some of the current leaders on the team to be present in those meetings.

"Rather than have Williams go to dinner with their front office and coaches, they sent him to dinner with team leaders Cole Kmet, DJ Moore, T.J. Edwards and others. The thinking was, those are some of the team's most respected players, the players whom others listen to, and this group then would be able to tell the other players what they were getting in Williams, who is likely to be the No. 1 overall pick." - ESPN's Adam Schefter

Going through that process had to be a big deal for the current leaders to get to know Williams and for Williams to get to know the locker room before walking in. 

While on The Pivot, Williams emphasized that he wants to make sure his teammates knows he cares and knows that winning is the most important thing. Being able to meet with the likes of DJ Moore, Cole Kmet, T.J. Edwards and the others is a great opportunity to go ahead and establish that mindset.

The Bears are about to be in an incredibly favorable situation for years to come with Williams as their franchise quarterback once the team makes things official on opening night later this week. 

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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