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Aaron Schatz, ESPN Writer
It’s hard to predict the effectiveness of first-round rookie quarterbacks. Even No. 1 picks often struggle, as Bryce Young did last season. But many of those issues are due to being drafted by bad teams lacking playmakers. Other quarterbacks are drafted into good situations with veteran playmakers ready to help them succeed.
It seems as if the Chicago Bears’ Caleb Williams was gifted one of those good situations. It’s an ideal one, in fact, with receivers DJ Moore and Keenan Allen there to catch his passes along with Rome Odunze, the Bears’ other top-10 pick.
But was Williams placed into the best situation for a quarterback taken early in the NFL draft in recent history? To answer that question, I looked at every QB selected in the top 12 picks since 1990 (which includes this year’s first-round passers), plus three No. 1 picks from the 1980s. Quarterbacks were judged based on the roster the year they were drafted even if they didn’t play as a rookie. From there, I came up with three sets of rankings — five best situations for No. 1 picks, 10 best situations for highly drafted first-round QBs and five worst scenarios for highly drafted first-rounders.
Where does Williams’ current setup with the Bears fall on the list? Can that supporting cast be topped? Let’s dive in.
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Best No. 1 pick situations | Best top-12 situations
Worst top-12 situations
