In one of the most important articles put out by The Athletic each year, Mike Sando's "NFL QB Tiers" for 2025 hit the internet on Monday morning. For those unaware of this annual feature, Sando speaks with a ton of NFL coaches and front-office executives to get their overall vibes on every starting-level quarterback in the league. It does not take into account rookies, so this is the first for the 2024 class.
Sando's rankings place every quarterback in question into one of five tiers. The first can carry his team each week. The second can sometimes do it, but not as consistently in Tier 1. When it comes to Tier 3, this starting-level player needs a great supporting cast around him to thrive. Tier 4 belongs to unproven players or veterans on the decline. And for Tier 5, that guy is better suited to be a backup...
Coming in at No. 23 and near the bottom of Tier 3 is Chicago Bears starting quarterback Caleb Williams. He ranks behind two draft classmates in this tier in Bo Nix tied for No. 20 with Sam Darnold and right behind Drake Maye at No. 22. Jayden Daniels is the best of the second-year players as the best player in Tier 2 at No. 6. Only Michael Penix Jr. (No. 28) and J.J. McCarthy (No. 29) are behind him.
What does this Tier 3 ranking mean for Williams now in his second professional season out of USC?
Caleb Williams does not receive favorable ranking in NFL QB Tiers 2025
One coach's main takeaway was that Williams takes too long to get rid of the football.
"'He's got the talent to go up, but in terms of processing ability and getting the ball out of his hands, it was the worst we played against,' a defensive coordinator said. 'He just holds the ball forever. I'm thinking, 'The ball should go right there! Throw it! Throw it!' And he did not throw it.'"
A head coach raised the alarms over Williams' processing.
"'He is definitely a 1 talent,' a head coach said. 'I just think it's going to take him longer than Jayden Daniels. He is not playing fast right now. There is something there. His processing to me was alarming watching the tape.'"
Again, this is all subjective. If Williams goes out and balls out in his second NFL season, none of this is going to matter. However, the general consensus has him behind starting quarterbacks we are not entirely sure are even good to great anymore. Aaron Rodgers (No. 16), Tua Tagovailoa (No. 17), Trevor Lawrence (No. 18) and Geno Smith (No. 19) all rank a good distance ahead of Williams inside of Tier 3.
The good news for Williams is he could be propped up by a great running game and a good defense in Chicago. Running the ball is new head coach Ben Johnson's forte coming over from Detroit. Even during their worst years, Chicago has good instinctive genes as an organization on defense. What I am getting at is the reason Brock Purdy barely cracks Tier 2 is because he has both in San Francisco.
Yes, Williams is infinitely more talented than Purdy, but on-field production is really the only thing coaches and front-office executives care about at the game's highest level. Williams has to embrace a student mentality even more. After all, he is playing in his third different offense in as many years dating back to his final year at USC. If Johnson embraces the Air Raid, then Williams can grow faster.
Overall, we can clearly see that being a blue-chip prospect means nothing in the eyes of coaches and NFL talent evaluators. Many of the players occupying Tier 1 were at one point in time first-round picks, some even No. 1 overall selections like Williams was in 2024. While every quarterback in Tier 1 was a blue-chip prospect, there are a few occupying Tier 2 that did not hear their names called first.
In short, there is still a ton of belief in Williams' upside, but he cannot have another so-so NFL season.