Bears
Bears GM Ryan Poles discussed how QB Caleb Williams can handle adversity and his ability to have a short-term memory.
“The one thing with Caleb is it doesn’t linger,” Poles said, via ESPN. “It’s not like if he has a rough day or the practice didn’t go the way they wanted, his body language isn’t great in the building. Even after a rough day he bounces back quickly. I’d be more concerned if I needed to go breathe some life into him. He’s in a good place.”
Bears HC Ben Johnson emphasized body language and said that Williams had to correct his based on certain points last year.
“It’s like, do we really want to … is this what we want to look like or not?” Johnson said. “We come to an agreement, no it’s not. OK, we learn from it, we move on to the next thing. We don’t want to be a ‘palms-up team’ where we’re questioning everything. No, no, no; to me that’s a little bit of a sign of weakness. We don’t want to [see] that from anybody on the team.”
Williams said that he’s working to become more of a leader and consistent in his second season.
“This year for me, it was trying to take a step up in my leadership role and pushing the guys, and part of it is going out there and being right, doing everything right, getting the playcalls in fast, being out there, being confident, knowing what I’m doing,” Williams said. “The other half of it is, when things are messing up, let’s rehuddle, let’s get up, come on. Let’s get this thing going. In two-minute, encouraging the guys. It’s the fourth quarter, I know we’re in practice, it’s a hot day, it’s the fourth quarter in the game, it’s time to go win. Let’s go win this game. It’s small things like that. The encouragement, the belief in ourselves, the belief in our hard work that we’re putting in, and then other than that it’s going out there and having fun and showing it.”
Packers
Back in February, Packers QB Jordan Love made an appearance on new teammate Micah Parsons‘ podcast and jokingly recruited him to join him in Green Bay. It got some buzz on social media but wasn’t treated seriously at the time because no one thought Dallas would seriously consider trading Parsons, let alone to the Packers. Parsons said this past week that it still wasn’t a factor, but it is ironic to look back on now.
“I don’t think it was ever a serious conversation because I never thought I’d be traded, but that’s the harsh reality. Me and Jordan, we’re super close, having the same agent,” Parsons said via Pro Football Talk. “We’ve got a very good relationship.”
Vikings
Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson is looking to prove himself once again entering 2025 as he’s had a couple of injury-barred seasons.
“I’m one of the top route-running tight ends in the league,” Hockenson said, via Around The NFL. “I pride myself on creating separation and you look at it and that’s what I do on Sundays. … There’s been times throughout my career I’ve had challenges and I’ve always been able to bounce back and be a better player than what I was.”
Hockenson said QB J.J. McCarthy has traits of both Rams QB Matthew Stafford and Falcons QB Kirk Cousins.
“J.J. is a lot like Staff and a little like Kirk,” Hockenson said. “Just depends on the routes and what we’re doing. ‘I want you here at this time, but on the same hand I want you to get open. I’m going to trust you.‘”
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