Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams’ leadership tactics are not winning praise from one longtime NFL wide receiver.
In an appearance on “The Carton Show” Thursday, former New York Giants wide receiver Amani Toomer ripped Williams after the quarterback requested that his teammates help keep their training camp venue clean. Toomer saw this as ridiculous.
"He's Russell Wilson 2.0. This is not gonna go over well."
— @AmaniAToomer sounds OFF on Caleb Williams telling teammates to clean up locker room pic.twitter.com/25IhwWzV0C
— The Carton Show (@TheCartonShow) August 1, 2024
“He’s Russell Wilson 2.0. This is not going to go over well,” Toomer predicted. “If you came in the locker room, I’ve been in this locker room for eight years, and some rookie’s going to come in who hasn’t played one snap, wearing the fingernail polish, he’s going to come in here and tell me, who’s been here through the struggle, that I need to clean up? How about, rookie, you clean up after me? Don’t give me this crap.
“I don’t like it at all. I feel like rookies should earn their respect. Just because you got drafted No. 1 doesn’t mean nothing to me because I don’t even know if you’re good.”
It’s worth noting that it was eight-year veteran Kevin Byard who revealed the request Toomer is so bothered by. Byard did not seem to have a problem with it, and it certainly wasn’t implied that Williams wasn’t carrying his own share of the burden by asking teammates to keep the place clean without doing the same himself. The Wilson comparison is odd, too. As corny as Wilson can come off, he is a Super Bowl-winning quarterback, and a lot of quarterbacks would love to have his career were it offered to them.
Ultimately, it only really matters if Bears players have a problem with how Williams is handling things. That does not appear to be the case, and even if it is, the objections will fade quickly if he performs well once the season starts.
