‘Very talented’ Texans safety Calen Bullock squares off against ‘do-it-all’ Bears rookie, USC teammate Caleb Williams

HOUSTON – Calen Bullock spent his college years testing his wits and reactions against Caleb Williams, his USC teammate and Heisman Trophy winning quarterback.

Sometimes, Bullock would pick off the future top overall pick of the draft. Sometimes, Williams would strike deep for a touchdown.

“We’ve had our battles,” Bullock said.

On Sunday night, the two friends will clash at NRG Stadium as Bullock, a Texans rookie safety who intercepted a pass last Sunday in his first NFL game, and Williams, the Chicago Bears’ starting rookie quarterback, renew their friendly rivalry in the second game of their respective NFL careers.

“It felt good because I know the talks me and him used to have in school every single day,” Bullock said. “We support each other. So, now, we’re in this position and it feels good to see each other have a lot of success.”

There’s no plan to interact this week, though, before kickoff.

“Not this week, we ain’t going to talk,” Bullock said. “We talked last week, but this week we’ve got each other blocked.”

What about afterward?

“No, not trading jerseys,” Bullock said. “I’ll probably send him one after the game.”

Bullock got off to a faster start than Williams. He broke cleanly on the football, relying on his instincts for a diving interception of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richards in the red zone at Lucas Oil Stadium during a 29-27 road victory. Bullock received the highest grade of any rookie, a 82.3 mark, according to Pro Football Focus analytics.

Although Williams won his first start, he struggled with his decision-making and accuracy as he completed just 14 of 29 passes for 93 yards and no touchdowns for a 55.7 passer rating and rushed for just 15 yards on five carries. Known for his improvisational skills at the collegiate level where he passed for 9,782 career yards, 93 touchdowns and 14 interceptions with 966 rushing yards and 27 touchdowns, Williams is still adjusting to the speed of the NFL.

“It’s going to be fun playing against Caleb Williams, talented guy,” Bullock said. “I know what to expect from him as a quarterback. He does a little bit of everything. So, I know we’re gonna have fun out there and talk a lot of trash to each other.

“He can do it all. But, in this game, we’re trying to keep that boy on the pocket. Once he gets out of the pocket, he’s trying to make things happen. I know what he’s capable of. I know what I’m about to go up against.”

It’s been a fun start to his NFL career for Bullock, a former Pac-12 Conference Co-Perimeter Defensive Player of the Year who intercepted nine career passes for the Trojans.

His family is proud, and his phone is full of congratulatory text messages.

“A lot of people, a lot of texts,” Bullock said. “Some people going crazy. Feels good, though.

And his older teammates have been mentoring him and encouraging his progress.

“Just going in there and play my game, be myself,” Bullock said. “They know I’m very talented. They’ve got my back, and I’ve got their back. It’s time to go out there and play fast. They know I know what I’m doing and don’t second-guess anything.

“It makes a lot of difference. It feels good knowing I got all of those older guys counting on me and I count on them and I know that I’m going to war with them.”

Bullock recorded two tackles while playing 25 defensive snaps, 56 percent of the total defensive plays.

He’s off to an encouraging start.

“Yeah, it’s exciting when the rookies step up and make a play, in his first game,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “Not many rookie safeties have done that, get an interception in their debut game and Calen can add his name to the list. It wasn’t surprising to me, and that’s why we want to get him on the field because he has such a great knack for finding the football and actually coming down with it and making game-changing plays. So, we want our playmakers on the field and Calen deserved to be out.”

At 6-foot-3, 190 pounds with 4.48 speed in the 40-yard dash, Bullock is a rangy defensive back with a proven track record for picking off passes.

Signed to a four-year, $5.856 million contract that includes a $1.079 million signing bonus, Bullock was selected 78th overall as Texans general manager Nick Caserio traded up to the Philadelphia Eagles’ original selection in exchange for the 86th and 123rd overall selections.

“Oh man, I think he’s a ballhawk,” veteran safety Jimmie Ward said. “I think Nick and (Ryans) did a great job of drafting him. He’s going to do what he does best. He’s going to find that ball.”

An All-Pac-12 selection, the native of Pasadena, Calif., intercepted two passes last season and returned one for a touchdown. He had 61 tackles and seven pass breakups Although he’s behind veteran Eric Murray, who’s also played well, on the depth chart. Bullock’s role figures to continue to increase.

“His history as a deep field player in college and what he did there, sort of just has a pretty innate understanding of those type of positions on the field and how to take advantage of those,” Texans defensive coordinator Matt Burke said. “He made plays on the ball in college, he made plays on the ball in training camp and obviously Week 1, he made plays on the ball there. I do think he has pretty good feel from those deep zone areas and where he’s fitting and then as you get to this level and start formation recognition, or what routes you’re getting out of those formations.

“I think that’s probably what he is alluding to in terms of just like studying the film and now that’s the second level of: ‘Okay, I know where I’m supposed to be but what am I expecting from presnap formations?’ I think that kind of heightens your anticipation of what you’re getting and put you in a position to make those breaks. That was a good start for him and I’m excited to see him again this week.”

Bullock read the eyes and intentions of Richardson as he dropped into coverage with his instincts kicking into gear.

They led him in the right direction. Bullock provided one of the few bright spots for a secondary that had an up-and-down game with some rough moments on deep balls against a strong-armed former fourth overall pick of the draft.

It was Bullock who shut down Richardson in the red zone by jumping in front of a pass intended for tight end Kylen Granson in the first half of the Texans’ season-opening win.

“I just broke on the quarterback, seen where he was looking and broke on the ball,” said Bullock, a third-round draft pick. “It means a lot. I’ve dreamed of moments like this since I was a kid and I go out here and get a pick in my first game.

The Texans had those aforementioned issues in coverage, though, allowing a 60-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Alec Pierce in the first quarter as he got behind Pro Bowl alternate corner Derek Stingley Jr. and Ward. It looked like Stingley expected help over the top, but Pierce simply accelerated behind both defensive backs.

Richardson was just 9 of 19 as he’s still a developing quarterback with accuracy issues who misfired on potential touchdown passes to Adonai Mitchell. He passed for 212 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown to wide receiver Ashton Dulin behind diving linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair. And Richardson set up another touchdown with his 57-yard pass to Pierce in the fourth quarter before Ward tackled him at the Texans’ 16-yard line.

There’s room for improvement as a defense.

“Stop some of those big plays, I’ll say play faster,” Bullock said. “Got to match our guys. I know they will do their job, and we’ll do our job in the back end.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com.