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The Chicago Bears selected QB Caleb Williams with the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. While the signal caller headlined the team’s draft class, he wasn’t the only notable addition.
The Bears used a fourth-round selection on Iowa punter Tory Taylor, bolstering their special teams for the foreseeable future. A past message from one rookie to the other has now resurfaced.
Williams reached out to Taylor soon after he was drafted last April. The punter later detailed a short text conversation between the soon-to-be teammates.
Hey, you’re not going to punt too much here.
– Caleb Williams to Tory Taylor
While the chat was light-hearted, it wound up aging, oh, so poorly.
The Bears struggled in Caleb Williams’ debut, totaling just 148 yards. Chicago won in spite of its offense, recording a touchdown on defense and special teams to overcome an early 17-0 deficit.
With the unit unable to move the ball consistently, it was Tory Taylor whose stat line went crazy, not his quarterback’s.
The punter racked up 270 yards on six punts, three of which landed inside the 20-yard line to flip field position.
Tory Taylor just nuked a punt 60 yards! pic.twitter.com/a0dczId9eP
— Owen Siebring (@owensiebring) September 8, 2024
Taylor is used to the high usage following a record-setting career with the Hawkeyes. A program built on special teams and defense, he was called upon early and often last season as he set a new NCAA mark for punt yardage.
It was more of the same in his NFL debut!
Caleb Williams, meanwhile, struggled in his first professional start under center. The passer completed 48% of his throws to total 93 yards while failing to lead a touchdown drive.
He’ll look to make good on his punting promise to Tory Taylor in the coming weeks. The Bears take on Houston in Week 2 in a matchup of unbeatens.