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There is some debate surrounding whether or not No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams actually signed a deal with the Chicago Bears on Tuesday. The rookie was said to have inked his signature on that NFL paperwork yesterday, but now, those reports have become unclear.
Adam Schefter was the first to break the news online, claiming that Williams had officially become a member of the franchise after agreeing to terms with Chicago.
His supposed four-year contract was worth a fully guaranteed $39 million and included a $25.5 million signing bonus and fifth-year team option – though one notable request was missing.
Less than 24 hours after those reports surfaced, though, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk disputed the claims.
While appearing on 670 The Score in Chicago, he said that Caleb Williams had not signed his rookie deal.
Mike Florio of @ProFootballTalk tells @dan_bernstein and @leilarahimi that Caleb Williams has not signed his rookie contract. Williams and the team have an agreement in place and the two sides are “haggling over language.”
-Bernstein & Holmes Show // X: @BernsyHolmes
Some of that haggling might’ve revolved around Williams’ unprecedented terms.
Caleb Williams wanted the Bears to agree to NOT use a franchise tag after Year 5.
This is a typically non-negotiable aspect of the deal. In fact, no rookie has ever secured the term, but Williams at least brought it into the conversation. According to Florio, talks didn’t go far regarding the request.
Mike Florio tells @dan_bernstein & @leilarahimi on @670TheScore that he’s been told there was an effort made to get the #Bears to agree NOT to use the franchise tag on Caleb Williams after he finishes the fifth year of his contract, and that did not go anywhere.
-Bernstein & Holmes Show // X: @BernsyHolmes
It wouldn’t be the first time the quarterback has taken the path less (never) travelled. He made a historic decision at the NFL Combine to withhold his medical information from prospective teams while opting to visit just one suitor.
While Mike Florio did dispute Adam Schefter’s initial reporting on Williams, he also said that a deal was imminent.
Despite widespread reports from Tuesday that the first overall pick has signed his rookie deal, we’ve heard on multiple occasions since those reports surfaced that he has not yet put his name on the dotted line…
That said, the deal is essentially done. They’re haggling over some of the language. And that process is being complicated, we’re told, by the fact that the lawyer Williams has hired to assist him lacks the knowledge and experience that comes from being a full-time agent.
All signs point to Caleb Williams being a Bear (whether he is already or will be in the very near future). Still, this news offers another strange turn in his post-college saga.