Maybe Caleb Williams just isn’t used to someone grabbing him by the shoulder pads and saying, “Come here.”
Especially when that someone is a rival quarterback only six weeks — and one extremely impressive rookie season — his senior.
Moments after C.J. Stroud‘s Houston Texans defeated Williams’ Chicago Bears 19-13 at home Sunday, the 22-year-old quarterbacks met at midfield of NRG Stadium. Stroud was miked up, and he came off like a sage veteran offering Williams advice.
“Good job out there, stop taking those hits,” Stroud said.
Williams, who was sacked seven times, took 11 quarterback hits and had two passes intercepted, responded with a blank stare. He began to depart, only to have Stroud grip his shoulder pads and pull him back.
Stroud, who was a rookie of the year revelation last season, kept the advice flowing, saying, “Come here. Learn from those mistakes. And everything that you got, bro, is in you already, bro. You’re going to be a hell of a player in this league.”
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Maybe it was including the word “mistakes” in the comment.
Maybe Williams, the former USC star and 2022 Heisman Trophy winner, simply didn’t feel like chitchatting after suffering his first loss as an NFL quarterback.
Maybe he just didn’t want to hear it from the guy who finished third in that same 2022 Heisman voting.
But Williams gave the impression he wasn’t thrilled by the advice, with some on social media going as far as saying he was “dismissive.”
Stroud made it clear during a news conference Wednesday that he had nothing but good intentions and that Williams’ reaction didn’t bother him.
“I was not trying to little bro him or anything, he knows that, too,” Stroud said. “I have a ton of respect for him.”
Read more: Caleb Williams: Magician who restored USC’s football brand
Stroud said he was the recipient of similar advice last season when he was a rookie out of Ohio State.
“I had so many guys coming to me after games last year, and that meant the world to me that those guys even thought about giving me advice,” he said. “So, I just try to give back to what the game is giving me. So, I wish him the best, man. I want him to do amazing in this league. I think he will.”
Stroud, a former Rancho Cucamonga High standout, is maturing fast, gathering information from all over to gain an edge. He heard Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson on “the Richard Sherman Podcast” divulge how he could feign a coverage to fool a quarterback, so he approached Johnson before Sunday’s game, telling him with a laugh, “I heard your secrets on the Richard Sherman podcast, dude. That palms look. You ain’t getting me!”
Williams was the first pick in the 2024 NFL draft, a year after Stroud was the second pick. The two young guns likely will enjoy a spirited rivalry for the next decade or so. Their first on-field interaction might have been awkward, and perhaps in the next meeting between their teams, Williams will get the upper hand.
“He’s just upset that they lost,” Stroud said. “I totally understand.”
Read more: Rancho Cucamonga’s C.J. Stroud is thriving deep in the hearts of Texans fans
Williams spoke at a news conference Wednesday, but wasn’t asked about the interaction with Stroud. He did, however, say it was jarring to get pummeled for the first time since USC lost to UCLA in November in his last college game.
“Just getting used to getting hit again, it’s been a while,” he said. “It’s been since Nov. 18 since I was hit, so getting used to that.”
Williams also said that despite the loss to the Texans, his outlook is rosy. And he smiled, a distinct departure from the blank stare on his face listening to Stroud.
“It’s great, it’s truly awesome,” he said. “You sign up for this position, you sign up for games like that.”
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.