The Chicago Bears are largely expected to use the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft to draft USC’s Caleb Williams as their new starting quarterback, but he is not the only quarterback who has caught their eyes in the process.

According to Jacob Infante of Windy City Gridiron, the Bears have spoken with Temple quarterback Quincy Patterson II, a 6-foot-3 and 240-pound prospect who he says is drawing interest for a “Taysom Hill-like role” from teams during the pre-draft process.

Patterson — a Chicago native — operated in short-yardage situations as both a running back and quarterback over the past two seasons, putting up 219 rushing yards, 248 passing yards and six total touchdowns for the Owls in 16 games. He played a more featured role in his previous stop with North Dakota State with 660 rushing yards, 813 passing yards and 11 total touchdowns over 14 games for the Bison in 2021.

Patterson also spent three years with Virginia Tech’s program, playing 13 games.

While Patterson is likely to go undrafted in 2024, the Bears are recently acquainted with the fact that worthwhile quarterback talents can emerge from the UDFA pile. Tyson Bagent, a 2023 undrafted signing, worked his way from No. 4 quarterback to the primary backup job just last season and made four relief starts for starter Justin Fields.

Even with Bagent under contract for next season, Patterson could be worth bringing in after the draft if he continues to hold the Bears’ attention over the next few months.

Bears Likely to Continue Scouting QBs for 2024 Draft
As of March 14, the predominant expectation around the league is that the Bears are planning to use the No. 1 overall pick in the draft on Williams. Fields improved in 2023 but not so much that he made himself an undeniable starter for Chicago, putting the team in a unique position with a strong quarterback class and the top overall selection.

Just because Williams is the popular choice to land with the Bears next season, though, does not mean the team will avoid doing its due diligence on the other options.

The Bears are going to make sure they cover all of their bases over the next few months when it comes to making a monumental decision for their franchise. They showed that on March 12 when Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer reported that head coach Matt Eberflus was the only head coach who attended Oregon quarterback Bo Nix’s pro day.

The Bears will also likely show it again during the other quarterback pro days later this month. Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy (March 22), LSU’s Jayden Daniels (March 27) and North Carolina’s Drake Maye (March 28) are among the first-round hopefuls, but Notre Dame’s Sam Hartman (March 21), Florida State’s Jordan Travis (March 22) and Tulane’s Michael Pratt (March 27) could also potentially intrigue them.

What Will Happen With Justin Fields in Coming Months?
The other quarterback question hanging over the Bears is what to do with Justin Fields. The Bears did not trade him before the start of the new league year on March 13, and several other teams found solutions to their quarterback vacancies: Kirk Cousins signed with Atlanta, Baker Mayfield stayed in Tampa Bay, Gardner Minshew signed with Las Vegas and Sam Darnold landed with Minnesota.

Heck, even Jameis Winston (Cleveland), Drew Lock (New York Giants), Joe Flacco (Indianapolis, Mitchell Trubisky (Buffalo) and Jacoby Brissett (New England) snapped up most of the available backup/bridge quarterback roles around the league.

So, what do the Bears do now? There are a few realistic options.

The first and most urgent option is for the Bears to settle for a lower-than-originally-expected offer from a team still seeking a backup quarterback. Chicago might not get any better than the sixth-rounder the Patriots got for Mac Jones, but it could have value if it means giving them more ammunition for the 2024 NFL draft, for which they hold no selections in the second, third, sixth or seventh rounds.

If the ultimate value is more important than timeliness to the Bears, waiting also has its advantages. The Bears run the risk of creating a toxic environment — mostly because of fans and media — if they have Fields and Williams (or another rookie) still on their roster when they begin training camp, but it would also buy time for a better trade opportunity to arise. Injuries can happen, and that gives way to desperation.