Caleb Williams' teammates are setting a standard he and the Bears rookies may not be able to live up to

There's one clear message coming out of Chicago Bears training camp, so far, and it's impossible to miss: This team wants to start fast in 2024.

"The urgency's [there], we have to get this thing going quickly," Bears tight end Cole Kmet told reporters on Friday . "There's not going to be time to meander through this thing. We have to get this thing going quickly, here. So. we have to operate at a high level. We have to really take advantage of our walkthroughs when we get these things at night. And the better we are through those things, the faster we'll be able to execute, you know, on game day. But yeah, it's got to happen quickly."

A fast start is obviously key for the Bears, who are trying to make the playoffs for the first time since the 2020 season. Everyone saw what the slow start, last year, did to the entire season outlook. If the team wants to play football in January, it can't bog itself down, early on.

There's one key aspect to the whole situation, however, and it's the matter of key rookies, Williams and Rome Odunze, well, being rookies. As we all know, nothing is guaranteed when it comes to rookie quarterbacks, receivers, or any position, in general.

All one needs to do is go back to last year. No one knows if a guy is going to play like CJ Stroud in Year 1, or Bryce Young.

So, when zooming out and including Williams and Odunze into the fast start, it's fair to wonder if the duo can live up to the standard being set by their more-established/veteran teammates.

"I'm not trying to match anyone," said Williams. "That's never the way that I kind of look at things, but I do have people like Cole and DJ that will correct me when I'm wrong and things like that. Whether it's in the huddle, where we're talking about stuff. [The] offensive line [and I], we talk constantly about cadence. So it's just trying to get the right rhythm and pace with these guys, so we can keep going on that, you know, on the upper trend."

To be clear: Williams isn't saying he isn't trying to match the expectations. He's saying he's not trying to match where the other guys are, in terms of NFL experience and even playbook knowledge. That easily constitutes as putting too much on his own plate, which could certainly lead to a slow start simply because there's just too much going on.

Williams is on point. Sure, he isn't on those guys' level when it comes to processing the NFL game, but, there's plenty of infrastructure in place that can help bring him along to where he may not be playing at a high level out of the gate, but he certainly isn't playing at a low enough level to where its costing the Bears games or even putting them in bad spots.

"[You] try to make it easy for him," new Bears wide receiver Keenan Allen told reporters Saturday. "Make sure we're seeing things eye-to-eye, and try to get to the spots that he likes, whatever spots you know, that he can see, versus what I'm seeing. And then just being on the same page...

"... I cater to the quarterback. I'm trying to be his best friend, stuff like that. So, as long as I get to the spots that he likes and at the timing that he likes too."

Still, even then, there are so many outside factors the Bears can't control and they could definitely play a role in a slow start. However, one can't pay attention to those for the exact reason of them being out of control. It's simple, just focus on what you can do to get better and that should come with time.

We won't know just how fast this team starts off in 2024, but it's clear that if Williams and his rookie counterparts do start off slow, the rest of the team should be able to carry them until things start clicking.