Former Giants wide receiver Amani Toomer tore into rookie Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams over his leadership style, calling him “Russell Wilson 2.0.”
Toomer, appearing on The Carton Show on Thursday, was responding to reports that Williams had demanded teammates take better care of their locker room by keeping it tidier.
Williams, according to Bears safety Kevin Byard, criticized his teammates for making more work for the cleaning staff.
“First thing he said was, ‘Hey, man, we’re all grown men here, right?'” Byard said. “He was like ‘We’re getting a little too sloppy. We’re leaving water bottles, towels and all types of things around. Custodians have a lot of square footage that they have to cover in this whole building. Let’s try to help them out by cleaning up after ourselves.'”
RELATED: Caleb Williams Responds To Pink Fingernail And Lip Gloss Controversy: ‘Your Girl Love ‘Em’
Caleb Williams As Leader? Amani Toomer Ain’t Having It
Cleaning up after yourself seems like a reasonable suggestion. Grown men should do that. Byard and others felt Caleb Williams’ comments were the sign of a leader willing to lead on even the minor details.
Amani Toomer wasn’t having any of that, however.
The all-time Giants leader in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns, and a Super Bowl champion, wasn’t too keen on hearing a lecture from a rookie.
“He’s Russell Wilson 2.0. This is not gonna go over well,” Toomer fumed.
“Some rookie’s gonna come in who hasn’t played one snap, talking, wearing the fingernail polish, now he’s gonna come in here and tell me, who has been here, been through the struggle, that I need to clean up?”
Toomer’s response comes from a player who competed at a time when rookies had to earn respect before they speak.
“No, how about you rookie? How about you clean up after me? Don’t give me this crap,” he added. “I don’t like it at all. I feel like rookies should earn their respect. Just because you got drafted number one doesn’t mean nothing to me.”
Amani Toomer goes OFF on #Bears QB Caleb Williams for telling his teammates to clean up the locker room:
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) August 1, 2024
“He's Russel Wilson 2.0…Some rookie comes in hasn’t played one snap, wearing the finger nail polish. Now he’s gonna come in here & tell me to clean up.."
(via… https://t.co/sHLSVwD25Y pic.twitter.com/mnO8dCsERd
RELATED: Heisman Winner Caleb Williams Sets Social Media On Fire With His Look At USC Women’s Basketball Game
Expressing Himself
Some might argue that Caleb Williams is earning the respect of his teammates by telling them to act like adults in the locker room.
Still, the Bears QB has courted controversy with his amplified personality. Particularly with the fingernails, as Toomer pointed out.
Readers of Bounding Into Sports are already well aware of the social media buzz generated by Williams’ look. One video appeared to show him wearing a wild pink getup while watching a USC women’s basketball game against Kansas earlier this week.
Williams mocked critics afterward, denying that his fingernails were painted and suggesting “your girl love ’em.” Which was a solid comeback, to be honest.
In his first season with USC, Williams led the Trojans to an 11-2 record and won the prestigious Heisman Trophy in 2022, becoming the seventh USC player to win the award and the first since Matt Leinart in 2004.
Williams previously explained why he does the fingernail painting thing. He suggests it’s just his way of expressing himself.
“I think the nails thing kind of took everybody by surprise,” Williams told People Magazine this past summer. “I’ve been doing it before college, but it took everybody by surprise, just because you don’t always see male athletes who play football paint their nails. But I think it’s just another way of expression.”
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