Payton had 'doubts' Caleb Williams would succeed in the NFL

[StickierBuns]

https://www.si.com/nfl/sean-payton-had-d...ucceed-nfl

"Per Wickersham, Payton "loved" Williams's arm at USC, but "worried a little about his processing speed" and saw "too many easy completions left on the field, open receivers that Williams fails to spot quickly." Payton has a formula that weighs negative plays, which Williams had a higher number on than either Nix or No. 2 pick Jayden Daniels. Additionally, Wickersham detailed that Payton questioned how Williams would handle failure."

I despise this guy (Payton), but he might very well be right in his pre-Draft assessment of Caleb Williams. He also appears spot-on in his assessment of Bo Nix, who seems to be killing it physically and mentally on the field. There's more than one way to skin a cat as a successful QB type in the NFL, but some of those required traits are shared. And it sure doesn't seem like Caleb has those traits....and a big one is handling failure and moving on to the next play. We've seen William's frustrated hissy fits already. Stay tuned in Chicago.

[JimmyinSD]

https://www.si.com/nfl/sean-payton-had-d...ucceed-nfl

"Per Wickersham, Payton "loved" Williams's arm at USC, but "worried a little about his processing speed" and saw "too many easy completions left on the field, open receivers that Williams fails to spot quickly." Payton has a formula that weighs negative plays, which Williams had a higher number on than either Nix or No. 2 pick Jayden Daniels. Additionally, Wickersham detailed that Payton questioned how Williams would handle failure."

I despise this guy (Payton), but he might very well be right in his pre-Draft assessment of Caleb Williams. He also appears spot-on in his assessment of Bo Nix, who seems to be killing it physically and mentally on the field. There's more than one way to skin a cat as a successful QB type in the NFL, but some of those required traits are shared. And it sure doesn't seem like Caleb has those traits....and a big one is handling failure and moving on to the next play. We've seen William's frustrated hissy fits already. Stay tuned in Chicago.

I think pre draft is said he was a mental pussy,  but this is a more mature way of saying the same thing.  I wanted to be excited when he chose mn as his preferred draft location,  but I really never could get past his actual game tape, and not just focus on his highlight reels.

[MaroonBells]

The worst thing they could've done to Williams was give him a new offense to learn. Williams will likely fail in this offense and Johnson will be fired, and they'll start the whole thing over again next year. You love to see it.

[JR44]

I watched every snap he took at USC and yes, there were a lot of times he didn't get the ball to open WRs, but what Payton fails to mention is it was because he played behind one of the worst offensive lines, was often scrambling right from the moment of the snap, had no time to throw and was forced to improvise and make many throws on the run. Never saw a college QB take such a pounding and yet he bounced up every time and never got down, which is why I laugh at some who question his mental toughness. If the Broncos had the number one pick, Williams still would have been the number one pick. Payton is a complete tool, wouldn't waste my time on anything he has to say.

[purplefaithful]

The worst thing they could've done to Williams was give him a new offense to learn. Williams will likely fail in this offense and Johnson will be fired, and they'll start the whole thing over again next year. You love to see it.

Maye is going through the same thing, happens all the time to these guys. 

It'll be interesting to see how Johnson handles this. He's a very smart guy and it's incumbent on him to evolve the offense to match Williams strengths vs fitting a square peg in a round hole.

[medaille]

Color me skeptical. I don’t believe a single word he says. I’m skeptical of these post mortem takes that are pretending that he knew which QBs were going to be good and which ones were going to be less good, but it’s only being said after we all know the answer. Obviously, he famously “baited” the Vikings into taking JJM (who was widely ranked above Nix), so he could get his preferred prospect Nix. Common sense would have indicated that if Nix was his preferred choice, he probably should have traded up a little bit to go get him, rather than rely on subterfuge to hopefully get him and retain a 3rd or whatever.

That said, I do think he’s one of the better coaches in the league, just lacking in those traits that make people good human beings.

[Viking1987isback]

I hate Payton  more than the packers.sould have received a lifetime ban

[StickierBuns]

I watched every snap he took at USC and yes, there were a lot of times he didn't get the ball to open WRs, but what Payton fails to mention is it was because he played behind one of the worst offensive lines, was often scrambling right from the moment of the snap, had no time to throw and was forced to improvise and make many throws on the run.  Never saw a college QB take such a pounding and yet he bounced up every time and never got down, which is why I laugh at some who question his mental toughness.  If the Broncos had the number one pick, Williams still would have been the number one pick.  Payton is a complete tool, wouldn't waste my time on anything he has to say.

I think you mentioned you watched a bunch of Caleb's games, correct? Probably some good insight there. He's got the team around him now too, so he needs to take that nice leap forward in 2025 to maintain trust with the coaches.

[greediron]

Maye is going through the same thing, happens all the time to these guys. 

It'll be interesting to see how Johnson handles this. He's a very smart guy and it's incumbent on him to evolve the offense to match Williams strengths vs fitting a square peg in a round hole.

Smart doesn't mean they aren't arrogant and willing to fail as long as they do it their way.

Here is to egos and square pegs in Chigaco.