Months before the Commanders’ first game last year, Olamide Zaccheaus knew his team’s rookie quarterback was going to be special. Jayden Daniels, whom the Bears passed over with the first pick and the Commanders drafted second, made a throw during organized team activities that just felt different.
“It was like a next-level type of throw,” Zaccheaus said Monday. “Then also just seeing how he was able to just handle everything. He was a young talent. It never really seemed like he was [young].
“People knew early on. And then just throughout the season last year, he progressively got better and better.”
It was the kind of development the Bears hoped they’d see out of Caleb Williams in his rookie year. Now it’s Zaccheaus’ job to help him get there — the 5-8, 193-pound slot receiver signed a one-year contract Monday after agreeing to a deal with the Bears on Thursday.
“The biggest thing I think is the mental aspect of it for any young quarterback, especially Caleb,” Zaccheaus said. “He has all the talent that you need to be a top-tier quarterback in the league, so a lot of it is just going to be the mental aspect of it. You know, kind of just slowing the game down.”
That will be new coach Ben Johnson’s job.
“Just the creativity in [Johnson’s] play calls and just how great the offenses have been and how productive they’ve been — that really excites me,” Zaccheaus said. “You also just watch film and tape of how hard they play for each other. That’s something that’s right up my alley.”
Zaccheaus had 45 catches for 506 yards in his lone season with the Commanders, one year after catching 10 for 164 in Philadelphia. He spent his first four years in Atlanta; in 2022, his best season, he caught 40 balls for 533 yards.
Zaccheaus fits in as the third receiver in a Bears receiving room that includes DJ Moore and Rome Odunze. The Bears continue to look for help — Monday, they met with receivers Rondale Moore and Mecole Hardman, sources confirmed.
“It could be a thing where we all push each other to be better,” Zaccheaus said. “I feel like there are things that we all do very well that we can help each other with.”
