Kyle Williams Watch

[imahobgoblin]

There is another crap thread of Williams vs Polk that this post could go under, but I think Kyle has earned his own thread.

Kyle came into this year with differing expectations. Some wanted him to be the #1 burner. Others thought he would ride the pine. A classic McDaniels offense is not conducive to rookies having historic seasons to say the least. Kyle entered a very crowded WR room, that turned out to be much better than most expected. Diggs needs 131 yards over 2 games to hit 1000. Hollins is not crap like all the Karens said. He is an awesome guy, team leader, and has been clutch for Drake. Boutte has so much potential, and the dude can really catch. Let's just pray he can get healthy for playoffs. It looks like he had a concussion last night. Hunter Henry found the fountain of youth and has been so fun to watch. Pop and Chism are awol. That is fine and another post.

But let's look at Kyle Williams. As a rookie in McDaniels system, the reasonable expectation in a deep WR room is patience, growth, and grabbing the few opportunities when they are given. He has done that. His performance was rough to begin the season, but he has slowly gotten more and more production. We are seeing him begin to understand pro ball and the offense. He will get increased snaps and hopefully more catches with Boutte out for a week or two (assumed concussion). I think we have to feel really good about Kyle going into the offseason with the good expectations for next year, and a few key catches for playoffs this year.

I will cap this post by saying that I do not think Kyle is our future #1 WR. I think his ceiling is a very productive #2 by year 3. I love his versatility to play X, Y, or Z/Slot. Pairing him up with Diggs as a mentor could not be better. I would like to see Diggs get a little extension in the offseason and have Kyle eventually replace him. I still want a big X dominator on the outside like an AJ Brown type. Kyle is humble, a hard worker, and seem to be willing to learn and grow. His flashes and 3 TDs give us something to be excited about. Much more so than Polk or Harry.

 

[VrabelJr]

He can both catch and get separation. Two things Polk and Harry couldn’t do. His ceiling will be determined by his ability to run routes and adjust to find holes in the defense.

 

[Patriot Missile]

Manxman is gonna be all over this thread like mistletoe when he sees it.

 

[Boomer B]

He’s delivered some big catches. Obviously the volume isn’t where we’d like but we are seeing the potential. He now has to show he can run the full route tree and not just go’s.

 

[manxman2601]

Manxman is gonna be all over this thread like mistletoe when he sees it.

I have alerts set up for when binkies are mentioned.

I’m just waiting on Bradyn Swinson getting his first sack.

 

[manxman2601]

For a split second last night I was convinced he was going to break a KOR for a TD too. It was the one shot from the pylon cam.

For now, I think his upside is Boutte with more speed. A largely sacrificial X who, thanks to Maye's deep ball accuracy, is always a threat to get the big one. I'm going to wait until next pre-season to see if he can learn the nuances of the position.

One thing I noticed during the draft process when I was researching him was that he graded really well against man coverage, less so against zone and that he was very successful on deep balls (his speed and release) and on short passes (his ability to break screens for big gains) but was less good on intermediate passes. So I knew, and said, he wasn't a nuanced route running receiver but that the upside of his outstanding releases, explosion and speed were still worth drafting.

 

[yukon cornelius]

could be a YAC monster, he blocks downfield, he makes the most of his opportunity

if he can show year 2 growth, I like everything I see so far......just need a little more

 

[RobertWeathers]

could be a YAC monster, he blocks downfield, he makes the most of his opportunity

if he can show year 2 growth, I like everything I see so far......just need a little more

Agree. We've seen way too many WRs show promise/given a pass year one here and year two do nothing and eventually flame out.

 

[mike_usagisan]

Earlier in the season, I was pretty sure he wasn't going to amount to anything, but patience paid off for Henderson and it's looking like it's paying off for KW, too. I'm excited to see what he can keep doing down the stretch and next season.

 

[patsinthesnow]

Malcolm Mitchell only had 6 receptions in the first half of the 2016 season. It’s a good sign Williams is flashing & he’ll have a similar opportunity be a factor in a playoff run.

 

[Vindicate]

Malcolm Mitchell only had 6 receptions in the first half of the 2016 season. It’s a good sign Williams is flashing & he’ll have a similar opportunity be a factor in a playoff run.

Especially if he can continue to mimic Mitchell's trajectory because that dude went off in the playoffs/SB

 

[Urgent]

The first half of the season when Maye was completing 80% of his passes Kyle was the outlier catching 20% of his targets. Maybe Josh slimmed his playbook options.
He gets open and catches the ball. We had a coach around here who said those were the two attributes he looked for in a receiver.
What he didn’t do was run the right routes or make the same adjustments as his QB. That can be taught. Quickness, speed, and hands (and size…) not so much.
Harry couldn’t get open.
Polk couldn’t catch.
So Williams should have much more upside.

 

[Hugepatsfan]

If he can break out this year or even next year it's an absolute game changer for the offense IMO. His skill set is a perfect fit for McDaniels' offense and Maye's deep throw ability. We generate explosive plays by Drake Maye throwing the ball so well downfield which has stopped defenses from really pushing the safeties back like you'd think they would with how productive we've been. A guy like KWilliams emerging could alter how defenses play us and reduce the amount of loaded boxes and exotic blitz packages we face.

 

[Drunken Cicerone]

I’ll say the insane thing because somebody has to…

Feelings of a possible emerging JSN?

 

[imahobgoblin]

I’ll say the insane thing because somebody has to…

Feelings of a possible emerging JSN?

Nope. Radically different guy. JSN has been an elite route-running technician with cerebral skills. Williams will never be on that level. Maybe a poor man's JSN of Kyle can get his routes to be way better in about 2+ years.

 

[p8ryts]

For a split second last night I was convinced he was going to break a KOR for a TD too. It was the one shot from the pylon cam.

For now, I think his upside is Boutte with more speed. A largely sacrificial X who, thanks to Maye's deep ball accuracy, is always a threat to get the big one. I'm going to wait until next pre-season to see if he can learn the nuances of the position.

One thing I noticed during the draft process when I was researching him was that he graded really well against man coverage, less so against zone and that he was very successful on deep balls (his speed and release) and on short passes (his ability to break screens for big gains) but was less good on intermediate passes. So I knew, and said, he wasn't a nuanced route running receiver but that the upside of his outstanding releases, explosion and speed were still worth drafting.

He strikes me as more of a Randy Moss light. He can win deep pretty consistently against man. Maybe next year.

 

[Tunescribe]

versatility to play X, Y, or Z/Slot. a big X dominator on the outside

Just for clarity's sake: these are more fanspeak/draftnik terms describing various skillsets vs. specific position or role designations used by NFL teams. Receivers line up in all manner of formation placements and run varied routes depending on matchups and situationally. So, saying one guy is exclusively an "X" or a "Y," etc. doesn't always apply. You usually will find smaller/shiftier receivers lining up at the inside slot, for example, but not exclusively.

 

[farn]

Especially if he can continue to mimic Mitchell's trajectory because that dude went off in the playoffs/SB

Always felt he was a good pick. People lament the duration of his career. The goal is to win the SB. He was a major contributor in a SB season / SB playoff run. IMO, that makes him a good pick.

 

[imahobgoblin]

Just for clarity's sake: these are more fanspeak/draftnik terms describing various skillsets vs. specific position or role designations used by NFL teams. Receivers line up in all manner of formation placements and run varied routes depending on matchups and situationally. So, saying one guy is exclusively an "X" or a "Y," etc. doesn't always apply. You usually will find smaller/shiftier receivers lining up at the inside slot, for example, but not exclusively.

So you just posted again so you could read your own post?

 

[Vindicate]

Always felt he was a good pick. People lament the duration of his career. The goal is to win the SB. He was a major contributor in a SB season / SB playoff run. IMO, that makes him a good pick.

I was sad his career was short. Not only was he beginning to become a solid contributer with Brady, he is very obviously a great human given what he got into afterwards (which, tbh, the world is prolly a better place with Mitchell being an author rather than potentially destroying his craft by way of football and CTE)