INDIANAPOLIS — It’s 6:54 on the first morning of March and the sun has not made it above the modest downtown skyline. Yet inside Great Hall J of the Indianapolis Convention Center, a media horde has begun to assemble.
It’s more than an hour before the first prospect interview at the NFL scouting combine. But it’s never too early to start jockeying for space and claiming territory, particularly on a morning like this and especially for those who cover the Chicago Bears, owners of the Nos. 1 and 9 selections in next month’s draft.
Not surprisingly, among the two dozen or so people in the room, the first six to arrive at the foot of Podium 4 are Bears reporters, with candles burnt on both ends from a long week but eager to learn more about several of the highest-profile prospects general manager Ryan Poles is considering as cornerstones in his championship build.
Offensive skill players are on the Friday docket for the media portion of the grueling five-day combine itinerary. And over a three-hour span, 82 prospects are scheduled to speak, including six or seven who figure to be picked in the first 90 minutes of the draft.
The group includes the top four quarterbacks in the class — Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, Jayden Daniels and J.J. McCarthy — plus three elite wide receivers in Marvin Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers and Rome Odunze.
Williams is the morning’s headliner, widely regarded as this year’s top prospect with a consensus building inside league circles that he will be an easy choice for the Bears at No. 1. But before the USC star gets his time to share a little of himself with the gathered media, the opening acts on Podium 4 are Daniels (8 a.m. sharp) followed by Harrison and then Maye.
This is a casual setting for the most part but carries a bit of pressure for the prospects, their opportunity to exhibit stage presence and poise. The questions will range from pointed to profound to preposterous.
NFL teams will be watching all of these back-and-forths, either live or later on video, closely scrutinizing how the players handle the moment and the opportunity.
‘As good as it gets’
It’s 8 a.m. when Daniels steps on stage and offers a thumbnail for who he is as a player and who he has become as a person. He explains his path from Cajon High School in California to the Heisman Trophy last season at LSU with three character-testing seasons at Arizona State in between.
“It’s been a long journey,” Daniel says. “But (I’m proud of) my growth.”
Next month, he will join the NFL, most likely as a top-five pick.
“I just want to go to the best situation,” he says, “whether that’s the first pick or 32nd pick. I am blessed overall to be here. No matter where I hear my name, I will be happy.”
It’s 8:19 when an NFL spokesperson announces Harrison’s Q-and-A session for the morning has been called off. “Marvin is not going to be speaking right here,” he says. “I don’t have any other updates.”
A little while later, Hall of Fame receiver Cris Carter posts on X that Harrison “is currently with the medical people getting a body scan. Relax.” But the social media speculation is already loose.
It’s 8:38 when Maye takes an athletic shortcut to his lectern, leaping onto the elevated stage rather than circling to the other side where a small staircase awaits.
The North Carolina quarterback is quite possibly the most energized prospect of the morning, exuding a kind of caffeinated charisma with a dash of upbeat Southern charm. Maye will soon unite with one NFL team as its new franchise quarterback. Whatever city that’s in, he will arrive with an understanding of how to be self-confident and self-critical.
He has leaned on Eli Manning as a resource during his development and says he felt like he made a big leap last season with his preparation habits.
Maye is also embracing his opportunity to connect with the Bears during the pre-draft process, breaking the ice with them earlier this week.
“Shoot,” Maye says. “Great sports town. Chicago is about as good as it gets.”
And when told of one of Ryan Poles’ quarterback evaluation categorization systems — artist or surgeon — Maye lights up.
“I try to be both,” he says. “You try to be a surgeon in the 2-minute drill and at the end of the game. There’s a little bit of that — hitting check-downs and winning mentally. But also, being an artist, some of that is making plays outside the pocket and doing my own thing when something is not open. I can do both.”
The headliner
It’s 9:01 a.m. when Williams gets his chance to talk, dressed in the official combine get-up. Black workout shorts provided by NoBull and a matching black hooded sweatshirt with his player ID stamped across the front: QB-14.
Williams leans into the microphone to greet the gathered reporters, a pack that’s probably 75 deep but is hit from the back with one of the more unusual icebreakers in combine-interview history, an aggressive query about his decision not to partake in the medical evaluations and on-field testing here.
This is verbatim: Are you afraid to compete? How do you respond to people who say you’re worried to be compared side by side with your peers in medicals, measurements and workouts? Are you afraid to be measured against those guys on-on-one? Is that why you’re not doing things?
Williams smiles.
“No,” he says, “Not doing those things was a decision by me and my team, my family. It comes down to that.”
The next 12 minutes, 28 questions offer a glimpse into Williams’ demeanor and mindset, two things all teams near the top of the draft continue diving deeper on. The goal is to fully assess whether the quarterback has the maturity, composure and perspective to complement his elite skill set.
He comes across as calm and introspective. His self-assurance remains open to interpretation.
Williams acknowledges his 2023 season at USC was, as he asserted previously, one of his most important years of football, a part of his journey that frustrated and challenged him.
“I had people in my corner to help me and to figure out the energy and feelings that I was feeling,” Williams says.
He is certain that was a learning experience he can apply at the next level when dealing with defeat and struggle and reflects on a late-October meeting he had with coach Lincoln Riley. “He sat me down and said you either grow from something like this or you keep feeling this feeling and you’ll stay where you are.”
Williams says he chose the growth option.
Just asking
Don’t get it twisted. The morning isn’t all serious and reflective. The zany questions in a forum like this are inevitable. And the answers during those off-the-wall moments frequently prove entertaining at the very least.
Daniels is asked if he could be any animal for 24 hours, what would he be.
He requests clarification. “Dead or alive?”
Alive, the reporter tells him.
“I’d be a lion,” Daniels says.
Several prospects are offered the opportunity to suggest a non-football event to add to the scouting combine. Maye wants a 3-point contest mixed in. Williams pushes for swimming. Odunze requests a video-game circuit.
“Test your cognitive ability, how fast your reaction skills are,” the Washington receiver says with a smile. “You’ve got to go into a war zone. And if you don’t get top five, you’re automatically cut.”
Odunze has obvious charm and natural ease in front of the media and gleefully bites the hook when presented with the possibility of linking up with Williams on the Bears two months from now.
“I know he’s a student of the game and someone who brings a lot of passion and a lot of desire to the game,” Odunze says. “So of course, to be paired up with him would be something special.”
It’s easy to see why, personality-wise, evaluators around the league continue to be drawn to Odunze’s composure, positive energy and sense of humor.
Odunze is asked if he thinks he would be able to successfully land a plan in case of an emergency.
“Absolutely not!” Odunze said. “We are going down. All souls have perished!”
Scouting report update: Knows limitations. Doesn’t try to be something he’s not.
The next steps
For obvious reasons, Williams remains the central focus of the morning, especially for the early-rising reporters from Chicago trying to feel out a possible union between the quarterback and the Bears.
It’s 9:02 when Williams is asked the first of nine questions tied to the Bears, a request that he deliver a message to fans in Chicago so they better understand what they would be getting in him as a player and as a person if Poles were to choose him at No. 1.
“The player and person they’d be getting is a person who cares for his teammates,” Williams says. “I try to take care of all my guys, no matter if you’re fourth on the depth chart or the star player. The other part is I’m a fierce competitor — as you may have seen after some games.”
About that …
Naturally, the high-profile episode from November when Williams reacted to a 52-42 loss to Washington by climbing into the stands and crying in his mother’s arms comes up. He is neither embarrassed by that moment nor fazed by the tsunami of criticism that came his way afterward.
“There are not many people in the world who get to experience what I experience every game day, every practice day,” Williams says. “So it kind of goes back to that for me. It’s something only I get to experience. It’s something I really care about — which is not only winning the game but doing it with my teammates. Every time we lose, I feel like I let my teammates down.”
Williams is more than happy to explain that competitive passion to teams. Just as he is eager to sell them on his leadership skills, self-aware enough to know he will soon have to modify his approach inside an NFL facility full of professionals.
“There are small things you may need to correct or adapt to going into an NFL locker room,” Williams says.
Williams makes it clear he is fully expecting to be chosen No. 1 overall, the pick the Bears own. And as he gets to know Poles, coach Matt Eberflus and others with the team better, he wants to learn one thing about the organization.
“Just, ‘Do you want to win?’ ” Williams says. “That’s it.”
To the point.
Just as the Bears continue working to learn more about the standout quarterback, Williams is doing similar recon on them.
It’s 9:16 when Williams leaves center stage and continues onto a series of other TV and radio interviews. He seems fully comfortable in the spotlight and ready for his next moment.
