Texans' C.J. Stroud sees great potential in Bears rookie Caleb Williams

Caleb Williams and C.J. Stroud haven't gone head-to-head on a football field yet, but they did battle it out for the Heisman Trophy back in 2022, where Williams emerged victorious and Stroud finished in third place. Now, Williams will look to make it 2-0 against Stroud when the Chicago Bears take on the Houston Texans on Sunday Night Football in Week 2.

Stroud is coming off an historic rookie season, which included becoming just the fifth rookie to pass for 4,000 yards in a season, en route to winning Offensive Rookie of the Year. So, naturally, Stroud is the blueprint when looking at the ideal rookie season for the much-hyped Williams.

Unfortunately, Williams' NFL debut didn't go as planned. He was under duress for much of the afternoon, the offense mustered just 148 total yards (including just 93 passing yards) and they failed to score a touchdown. But Williams was seeing the field well and didn't turn the ball over as his defense and special teams stepped up to lead Chicago to a 24-17 comeback win over the Tennessee Titans.

For what it's worth, Stroud's rookie debut wasn't picturesque either. While he didn't turn the ball over, the Texans failed to score a touchdown in a 25-9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Although, Stroud did throw for 244 yards.

Ahead of Sunday night's matchup, Stroud acknowledged that it takes time for quarterbacks -- including No. 1 pick Williams -- to find their footing in the league.

“It takes time. It’s not something that happens overnight," Stroud said of Williams. "You can see in every quarterback this week, I think, except for probably Baker Mayfield who looked really good, everybody’s kind of rusty trying to just get those cleats out and get that rust away. And I think quarterback play will start picking up Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, just like every year. So, I definitely think he’ll get his rhythm.”

The Bears offense struggled to find a rhythm against a Titans defensive front that dominated, especially within the interior with Jeffery Simmons and T'Vondre Sweat. Despite Williams' rocky first start, Stroud sees his potential to be a game changer once things start to click.

"He’s definitely a playmaker, somebody who can expend plays and make all the cool throws, a tough player, takes hits," Stroud said. "And [he’s] really just really talented, so I definitely do think that he has great things coming in his career and I definitely do think he’ll get his rhythm going."

Could that start as soon as Sunday night, when the Bears battle the Texans in prime time? Guess we'll have to tune in to find out.

This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Texans' C.J. Stroud sees great potential in Bears QB Caleb Williams