Insider addresses alleged Caleb Williams red flags

It turns out that three-time Pro Bowl selection Taylor Lewan wasn't the only noteworthy member of the NFL community a little turned off by how USC quarterback Caleb Williams handled the months leading up to the Chicago Bears likely making Williams the first pick of this year's draft. 

"Not all teams were thrilled with Williams' pre-draft process," ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler revealed on Tuesday. "He treated the NFL combine as if he were visiting a real estate open house, casually, declining medical exams and doing a few team interviews before leaving Indy. Teams described his interviews as 'good, not great' and 'relatively engaged' and noted Williams was not in full-blown interview mode like other prospects, though they suspect that's a byproduct of being a player who knows he's going No. 1."

Lewan generated headlines when he said in March he "did not get a good vibe from" Williams after the signal-caller declined to complete medical evaluations at the combine. Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson later warned Williams to not "bring that Hollywood stuff into the building" following the draft. 

Additionally, questions about Williams' leadership abilities related to his personality have hovered over his status since last fall. 

"I don't think he's had a great spring," an unnamed AFC executive told Fowler about Williams. "He's still going first. That's pretty much a done deal. But while he was a no-brainer three months ago, there's at least a conversation now. Even still, I think he's a smart kid, a good kid. He just knows where he's going." 

Whether or not that supposed "conversation" has anything to do with Jayden Daniels of the LSU Tigers is unknown. ESPN analysts Louis Riddick and Dan Orlovsky have insisted that Daniels and not Williams is "the best quarterback" in this year's draft class. 

With all of that said, evaluators compared Williams to future Hall of Famers Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes. 

"Everyone who spends time with him says he's a really good kid," one AFC scout said about Williams. "The noise on the outside...I don't think that's him."

Fowler also shared that "Williams is not considered a red flag from a personality standpoint by scouts who spoke to us." 

As of late Tuesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed Williams as a massive betting favorite at -10000 odds to be the first choice of the draft on April 25. It nevertheless sounds like some not responsible for making that decision believe the Bears should give Daniels a last look before the final Thursday of the month arrives.