2024 NFL Draft: Five takeaways from Daniel Jeremiah's pre-NFL Scouting Combine conference call

NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah held his annual pre-NFL Scouting Combine conference call with members of the media on Thursday, answering questions for two-plus hours. Here are five takeaways from the marathon event.

Tune in for live coverage of the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine beginning Feb. 29 on NFL Network and NFL+.

1) Mahomes-Williams comp: The debate about what the Bears should do with the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft rages on, but passing on USC's Caleb Williams could mean giving up a chance to select a player that has more in common with All-World quarterback Patrick Mahomes than you might think.

Jeremiah detailed the similarities he sees between the Trojans star and the Chiefs' three-time Super Bowl champion on Thursday.

"You don't want to compare somebody to the best player on the planet, but just in terms of how (Williams) kind of plays, with the creativity and a little flair and all the different throws he can make in terms of driving the ball, layering the ball, extending plays, all those things, there are similarities there," Jeremiah said.

"(Mahomes) needed some time to clean things up and got a chance to sit for a year (in Kansas City). Obviously, I don't think Caleb is going to be afforded the same luxury in that department. But I think you can put a plan in place where you put more on his plate the longer that he goes.

"Mahomes' situation at Texas Tech was, I thought, very similar to Caleb's situation at USC. ... Pat's last year at Texas Tech, they were 128th in scoring defense. (In 2023) USC was 121st. (Williams) was constantly chasing points. I thought that led to some of the habits that creeped in a little bit. ... He lost eight games at USC. They gave up an average of 43 points in