Why Drake Maye’s Super Bowl run doesn’t hurt Caleb Williams

This year showed that Williams has done more than enough already to prove he’s the man for the Bears, even though Maye has done more.

Nov 10, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) passes against the New England Patriots during the first half at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | David Banks-Imagn Images

The discourse was already up and going as soon as the New England Patriots put the finishing touches on their AFC Championship game win over the Denver Broncos.

I’ve seen some Chicago Bears fans mention it through the season as well—there have been times when I’ve wondered it myself.

Did the Bears make a mistake passing on Drake Maye and taking Caleb Williams No. 1 overall in 2024?

Throw the stats and strength-of-schedule narratives out of the window for a moment. Maye’s 2025-26 season has been unbelievable. He was by far the most efficient quarterback in football this past season and did more with less than any quarterback in the NFL, dragging a Patriots team that was 4-13 last season to a 14-3 regular season and Super Bowl berth. And even though he and the Patriots offense had a miserable day in the deteriorating conditions at Empower Field in Denver on Sunday, it was his gutsy scramble that punched New England’s ticket to their first Super Bowl since Tom Brady left down.

You can be a fan of the Bears and Williams without diminishing what Maye, who’s now the second-youngest quarterback in Super Bowl history, has done this year. 

On the flip side of that, though, you can appreciate Maye (as I, a former Patriots beat reporter, do) while not slandering Williams because of it. 

No, Williams has not yet accomplished what Maye and Jayden Daniels, the No. 2 overall pick from that 2024 draft class has. (You could make an argument for putting Bo Nix in that conversation, too, as he’s technically led his team to a championship game before WIlliams. But Nix hasn’t had it nearly as hard as Williams has in his career thus far.)

But that’s not because Williams was the wrong choice at No. 1 overall—or that he’s not good enough to accomplish those things. This past season has shown that he absolutely is, and that his unbelievable knack for clutch play has already elevated this team well above where it was in 2025. There’s no reason he and Ben Johnson won’t reach new heights in 2026, and that the matchup between the Bears and Patriots in Chicago next season can’t be a harbinger of a possible championship matchup one day.

In the meantime, it’s not on Williams (or anyone else) to put more pressure on him to make a Super Bowl just because Maye has done it. That pressure is already there because Williams wants to be the best. And that’s the only thing he needs to focus on—not what Maye or any of his 2024 classmates are doing.

That approach helped Williams transform his game in 2025 and cement himself as a superstar by the end of the season. And that mindset will help Williams win a Super Bowl with the Chicago Bears one day. Just let him do it his way and in his own time. Because time is all he needs to make it happen.

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• Why Bleacher Report’s 2024 Re-Draft Shouldn't Swap Caleb Williams for Drake Maye

• Mel Kiper Jr's First Mock Draft Gets It Right For The Bears