Caleb Williams shares his thoughts on playing in the Hall of Fame Game saying 'reps are paramount' but it isn't his decision

The Chicago Bears are set to kick off the 2024 preseason later this week against the Houston Texans on Thursday in the Hall of Fame Game, which will be a great opportunity to see some players in action fighting for potential roster spots.

It's also the first real NFL action for the rookie players who take the field but the Bears are still weighing all the options with first overall pick Caleb Williams.

The Bears rookie quarterback as taken the reigns of the new offensive scheme all offseason long going up against Chicago's stout first-team defense but the coaching staff still hasn't decided whether or not to let Williams play on Thursday.

Playing in the preseason opener against the Texans would be a great opportunity for Williams' development to see another live NFL defense in a game-like situation. So far, he thinks he's well ahead of his progression and is ready for the next step .

"I think I'm on track to be ready exactly where I need to be and where they want me to be," Williams said on Monday. "I'm excited every day I wake up I'm learning something new. And getting ready for the season, preseason, and these next practices."

The Bears have two more days of practice leading up to Thursday's game to make a decision with their rookie quarterback. Williams voiced his opinion on the decision but also noted that there are pros and cons with him playing.

"I always think there's more pros than cons than anything, especially for a young guy like myself," Williams added. "The reps are always paramount. For anybody like myself, a young rookie, second year guy, third year guys, it's paramount. It's really important. And we'll see about these preseason games coming up, how they play out... I would love to get out there and play [on Thursday]. That's pretty awesome to be at Canton. But, you know, this is coach's decision."

Following Monday's practice, offensive coordinator Shane Waldron dove into some of the pros of playing during the preseason that comes from a quarterback's perspective.

"It's the same as as the ball carriers," he said . "It's a live pocket situation. We know that ball security is at a premium. With the live rush, when the play ends and if there's a potential for a sack, how does that play finish out when it's real when it's not just a whistle that's blowing in the on the practice field. We've got guys trying to strip the ball, trying to finish the play on defense and how do we react to that? How do you react to the collapsing pocket?"

"And then the second part of that is, when a play does go off schedule, how do the lanes play out? If [the quarterback] gets out [of the pocket], which ones of those are realistic, and you truly see that in the game settings."

Based on injury risk alone, it's easy to see why the Bears coaching staff would want Williams to sit out during a relatively meaningless game at this point in the offseason. While facing opposing defenses and getting live reps is paramount for a young player, Williams has been getting plenty of learning experience in that regard during practice.

"These mistakes, these good and bad days that I'm having, I know it's preparing me for those games late in the season, these preseason games coming up, and obviously I go versus this defense every day, so they make it tough for me," Williams said.

Whether or not he takes the field on Thursday has yet to be decided at this point, but sooner than later he's going to take the field for the first time with the Bears during the preseason. How much he truly plays in the preseason remains to be the question.

Related: Preseason expectations for Caleb Williams based on recent quarterbacks drafted with the first overall pick