The 2024 NFL Draft is now in the rearview mirror. After a flurry of selections from April 25 to April 27, 257 players were selected to join the NFL.
With that, we give you our full recap of the Chicago Bears‘ draft, with analysis on every selection the team made during the weekend and an in-depth look at their top pick.
For more information on the players your favorite team drafted, it’s not too late to get the 2024 NFL Draft Guide, which includes expanded scouting reports, draft grades, offseason reports, unique advanced data, PFF grades and much more.
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2024 Draft Picks
- 1 (1): QB Caleb Williams, USC
- 1 (9): WR Rome Odunze, Washington
- 3 (75): OT Kiran Amegadjie, Yale
- 4 (121): P Tory Taylor, Iowa
- 5 (144): EDGE Austin Booker, Kansas
Williams — This decision came into focus after Chicago traded Justin Fields away earlier in the offseason. It’s the right decision for the Bears. Williams has the kind of unique playmaking ability that every team is looking for at the quarterback position, and he earned 90.0-plus PFF grades in three consecutive years to end his college career.
Odunze — The sixth-ranked player on the PFF big board falls to Chicago at the back end of the top 10. Odunze is able to tilt the scales on 50-50 balls and brought in 21 of his 28 contested targets last season. That’s a nice weapon for new quarterback Caleb Williams, who will have one of the better wide receiver trios in the NFL as a rookie — D.J. Moore, Keenan Allen and Odunze.
Amegadjie — The Bears continue to add pieces to their offense, grabbing a versatile offensive lineman in Amegadjie. The 57th overall player on the PFF big board, he played left tackle at Yale and dominated, earning an 89.5 PFF grade on just 234 snaps last season. He could be a guard at the next level, but as a third-round pick, he will have time to sit and develop at whichever spot he winds up.
Taylor — The Bears round out their draft with a key producer on special teams by grabbing a quality punter. Taylor earned a great 81.4 PFF punting grade after producing 35 punts inside the 20-yard and punting up to 67 yards.
Booker — After trading back into the draft, the Bears pick up a high-upside pass-rusher. Booker racked up 38 pressures and nine sacks in 2023 while posting a 14.8% pass-rush win rate. He has instant upside as a designated pass-rusher and could develop his play strength to become a three-down player.
DRAFT GRADE: A
Rookie Spotlight: QB Caleb Williams, USC
Scouting summary
Williams thrived over the last three seasons in Lincoln Riley's modernized Air Raid offense. His arm talent is well above average, and his footwork provides him with a good base in addition to supplementary body control and balance to make off-platform throws.
His accuracy is natural and impressive both in and out of structure. He can hold onto the ball too long, but that's due to his freedom in a vertical offense rather than an inability to process.
His 2023 struggles were due to inconsistency. His fearless confidence does lead to some incorrect decisions, but you live with that due to the magic he makes in similar situations.
Wins above average
WAA represents the number of wins a player is worth over an average college football player and is a metric that evaluators can utilize to assess performance. It combines how well a player performed in each facet of play (using PFF grades) and how valuable each facet is to winning football games. The result is a first-of-its-kind metric that allows for cross-positional valuation and predicts future value at the player and team levels.
How Williams ranks in the stable metrics
While Williams' calling card has been his ability to create explosive plays when things break down, he has also been one of the class' best on standard dropbacks and from a clean pocket.
The USC signal-caller completed 220 of his 292 clean-pocket attempts for 2,908 (10.0 yards per attempt) and 22 touchdowns during his final year in college. He recorded just two turnover-worthy plays across those attempts, showing just how good his decision-making was when he was kept free from pressure.
The bottom line
Williams is an incredibly talented player with natural gifts even other previous QB1s do not have. His issues are more from a lack of consistency than ability in any area.
This is a QB with franchise-changing talent that is worthy of a No. 1 overall selection.
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