2022 NFL Draft: Wide Receiver Deep Dive - Jameson Williams

 

Jameson Williams - Alabama

Overview:

Strengths:

1. Speed - Elite speed that he uses effectively on deep routes to gain separation.

2. Linear Acceleration - Great stop-and-go mid route. Does not need to take acute angles on release to get open.

3. Big Play Ability - Williams only needs one play to threaten a touchdown.

Weaknesses:

1. Lateral Agility - Both off of the line and with the ball in his hands.

2. Short and Mid Route Running - Can take any slant to the house, but does not gain reliable separation behind 15 yards out.

3. Blocking - Not only is his blocking technique poor, but he can miss key blocks entirely.

Grade: Mid-First

Williams may very well fall due to the ACL, but he should not exit the first round regardless. Prior to the injury, it would have been unsurprising for him to sneak up into the top ten. He likely will not be the first receiver taken in the NFL draft, but is still deserved of a first round pick.

Film:

Georgia (12/04/2021): 7-184-2

Will block if absolutely necessary, but not his forte. Should have broken 200 yards, but uncharacteristically slowed down on an early deep route. Extremely fast with the ball in his hands. Could have had a first down if he did not shy away from contact. Great linear speed off the line. Does not frequently turn the defender's hips with lateral agility, but his speed is enough of a threat to where a quick plant followed by a sprint is enough to get open. Great deep separation; not great separation underneath against press. Often against off coverage due to downfield threat, and can sit to get open underneath since the corner gives it to him. Beats press deep with speed. Can appear shifty at the line, but his power laterally after planting is average. Abrupt linear acceleration is great, and his game underneath can be deadly if he uses that into a route break as opposed to a standard two-yard slant.

Arkansas (11/20/2021): 8-190-3

Concentration drops. More rounded routes. Great deep separation. Elite speed. Gets open on slants more with raw speed than hip fluidity or shiftiness. Will block when it is required, poor base, posture, and hand positioning indicate that he either has not been taught technique, or does not know how to implement in real time. Ineffective improvisation after route completion with scrambling QB. Uses speed and single cuts to get open deep (Example Below).

Mississippi State (10/16/2021): 2-77-1

Solid attempt to ad lib broken play. Disappeared on a lot of routes and seemed to run with less vigor than usual. Got outplayed much of the first half; should be able to get more open on comeback route against Emerson in off coverage. Jameson only needs one play to house it. Not a good blocker.

Texas A&M (10/09/2021): 10-146-2

Not a great blocker. Bad blocker. Average behind LOS in one-on-one situation if agility is required over speed. Incredible linear acceleration after hop step. Nice contested catch in double coverage. Good deep route adjustment with an even better break on one of his touchdowns. Good three step 270, but smaller steps would have allowed for greater acceleration off of his right foot at the end (Example Below). This is an example of how his lateral acceleration could improve through coaching. Decent physicality on RAC. Needs to get more comfortable with intermediate routes against press.

Miami (09/04/2021): 4-126-1

So much linear speed. Gets shadowed on short and intermediate routes frequently (Example Under 'Notable Film'). Misses an important block.

CFP Championship (01/10/2022): 4-65-0

Great deep separation, and... oh no. Torn ACL.

Note: 5.5 games from this season is enough to see everything I needed to see from Williams. Also, he had over 21.3 yards per reception, as well as a touchdown on every four and a half receptions on the season. His big play ability is off the charts.

Notable Film:

If Williams is going to do that three step 270 (which is difficult to see in the clip), then he cannot take that steep of an angle on the initial route. His speed at that angle keeps the corner next to him waiting to pass off coverage. When the three step turn is completed, he runs straight into the corner. If he took a slightly steeper route, he would have already had the corner right on his back with their hips facing the same direction as he plants his right foot initially to decelerate. When he explodes off of his right foot on the third step, he then would already be at the left shoulder of the corner and could accelerate instead of running into him.

This is either a lack of understanding the nuances behind the route, or recognition of defensive scheme. If he was in man, then running the route as he did would be excellent because the corner would be accelerating towards the center of the field instead of sitting.

Importance

Nuances when running intermediate routes is extremely important at the NFL level. Maybe this route is just one of his less practiced routes. That is fine and correctable, but he struggles to get open using any method other than his speed. He may only need his speed depending on the system he enters, but he has much more potential than to just be an outside field stretcher. Williams may be able to be that elite versatile number one receiver with some film review and practice, but his separation behind 15 yards out needs significant work.

Coverage:

Press

Can beat press coverage deep with speed followed by breaks 10+ yards out. Does not gain much separation against press on the inside. Hop step or single jab into sprint is his main move against press, and he is fast enough to make it work (Example Below). Can get blanketed on short and intermediate routes against press.

Jam Response (in Press)

Does not have the hip fluidity or body control to reliably get passed a jam at the line. He is not frequently jammed because if a college corner's momentum is going the wrong way after a whiff when Williams starts sprinting, it is probably a big play. That said, many NFL corners are technical enough to ensure the jam makes solid contact and accelerate into the route with the receiver. This is not an area of concern whatsoever, as Williams has the physical tools to improve with practice.

Soft Press

This is the easiest way to defend Williams. His intermediate routes can usually be disrupted, and it is easy to shadow him if he gets it behind the line. That said, Williams can win deep against any type of coverage.

Squat

Squat truly depends on how the corner plays it. If they wait for contact before rotating their hips, then Williams is gone. They can play the deep route by giving up yardage underneath, but this is still no guarantee. Williams is rarely in the position to initiate contact with a corner whose hips are square because they turn or backpedal well before contact.

Off

Williams is frequently against off coverage because his speed is such a threat. This actually allows him to not have to dance at the line, one of his comparative weaknesses, and just use speed and deep route breaks to get open.

Inside Zone

Williams rarely sits in a zone, and when he does, someone is right on him. His game is not to sit underneath. When he is in the slot, he usually goes deep. When crossing inside, he looks to be moving when he gets the ball so he can accelerate and make a big play without needing to flip his hips or make a guy miss. Corners playing off coverage may allow Williams space to sit towards the boundaries, but this is not to be confused with finding holes in zone coverage.

Route Distance:

Behind LOS

Very mediocre, but can house any ball in his hands if given the right blocks. End arounds can go for big plays if he gets the edge, but bubble screens almost never amount to much. He can break weaker tackles, but does not have impressive contact balance. Footwork is acceptable and simple behind the LOS, but could be more fluid from catch to run.

0-5 yards

Williams does not understand how to get open in this area. If he runs laterally and gets the ball, he can turn it upfield.

5-10 yards

Similarly to 0-5 yards out, Williams rarely gains separation without crossing over the middle.

10-15 yards

Comeback, crossing, and out routes are the only consistent routes at this distance. Any route with more than one cut will not get reliable separation. Any acute changes of direction will not either, making his crossing and out routes generally superior to his comeback route. (Example Below - Williams not separating on comeback route vs Emerson in off coverage. Target was roughly 7 yards downfield, but the cut was done closer to 15 yards downfield. Watch the shadows).

15-20 yards

Williams can usually gain one step on defenders between the 15-20 in both man and zone. If he gets the ball in stride, he can take it all the way. Occasionally runs into safeties, but this is fine if he is going for a deeper route and gets passed off into one-on-one coverage with a safety.

20+ yards

Excellent. By far the best in class. Deep separation is difficult to achieve, even for guys faster than Williams. His speed along with clean one step route breaks and elite linear acceleration off of deep stutters allow him to get open reliably.

Blocking:

Willingness

He occasionally will attempt to block if required. He does not seek contact if it can be avoided.

Technique

Horrible technique. This may be primarily due to lack of effort, but rarely has he made a key block that allows a teammate to continue for a larger gain. He also flat out misses blocks at times, which is likely due to lack of effort as well. A breakdown of his technique is unnecessary because he needs to learn from the ground up.

Attributes:

Attributes		Grade (/10)	Notes
Separation	Short	4	Does not get open between 0-5 yards out except for the occasional goal-line back shoulder throw. Most short route success comes from behind the LOS, but that is purely manufactured separation.
	Medium	7	This would be lower than 7/10 in a vacuum based purely on measurable separation between Williams and a defender, but his ability to house any play where he only has one step of separation makes his separation more valuable than most other receivers. If he can learn to reliably gain that one step, he would easily be the top receiver in this class.
	Deep	10	Best in class.
Release	Stance	9.5	Excellent. No false step unless it is part of a quick move, and no drop step. Could occasionally posture slightly better on go routes when he knows there will be no stutter. That is the only reason stance is not a 10/10.
	Acceleration	9	Linear acceleration is incredible. He can accelerate to most DBs' top speed instantly, then kick in an extra gear if needed. Lateral acceleration is not on par with the elite NFL route runners, but its good enough to elicit a 9/10 grade overall for acceleration.
	Hip Control	6.5	Does not reliably sink hips before changing direction or accelerating laterally. Frequently stays high when initiating contact, and plants a perfectly straight leg that derives little power in shorter routes.
Hands	Catch Reliability	8.5	Almost always catches the routine pass. A few drops here and there, but nothing too concerning.
	Catch Radius	8	He can make difficult catches, but does not frequently need to. The nature of deeper passes requires adjustments while the ball is in the air as opposed to quick body contortions, and many of his short targets are behind the LOS. He will not be docked for missing a diving catch, and has made difficult some back shoulder catches when necessary, but I have not seen him make enough unique or difficult catches to rate him higher than an 8/10. Contested Catch - Williams can make a contested catch and knows how to undercut defenders in the middle. Similarly to difficult catches, I did not see him attempt many contested catches, and he will need to gain some muscle to out-position many NFL corners when blanketed.
Versatility	Starting Position	7.5	He can start from anywhere on the field, but is effectively limited to deep routes from the slot. Can threaten any direction from the outside, but is not great at sitting in a zone, nor running intermediate routes from the slot.
	Overall Skill Set	8.5	Williams has the skillset to succeed at the next level. His speed and single cuts in stride will make him an immediate playmaker in the NFL.
RAC	Athleticism	8.5	Great overall athleticism, but lacks physicality at 6'2" 190lbs. Gaining some muscle may help if he maintains his speed. Is not an athletic freak, but is athletic enough to perform his role with great success.
	Agility	7	While there are many knocks on his change of direction, it is mostly a result of emphasizing the weaknesses of a first round talent. Williams is not a shake-and-bake type of player, but still can make a defender miss.
	Contact Balance	7.5	Williams can run through extended arms and occasionally shrug off a weak tackle attempt, but he does shy away from contact at times.
Awareness	Sideline	8	He can make a back shoulder catch, has tip-toed the sideline after the catch, and dragged his heels to make a sideline catch, but he was more in-bounds than he realized. He has good sideline awareness, but it does not appear to be exceptional. Has not made many catches dragging his toes in reviewed film.
	Defensive Scheme	5	Hard to tell. He clearly needs to do some film review regardless, but it is unclear if he does not make many route adjustments due to lack of recognition on the fly, or because he knows that he can get open deep regardless.
	Improvisation	6	Occasionally runs with scrambling QB to ad lib, but he has rarely had to with Bryce Young. This is not concerning as he has the ability to continually gain deep separation if the play extends long enough.

Full Report:

Jameson Williams is an extremely talented deep route runner with the speed to reliably separate downfield when needed. His linear acceleration is phenomenal, and can kick in an extra gear with the ball in his hands. His stop-start ability is excellent if running in a straight line. These skills along with his athleticism make him worthy of a first round pick, although there are many glaring weaknesses in his game which are likely a result of him only being featured for one collegiate season. Short and intermediate separation, ability to make a man miss without just using speed, lateral acceleration off line and in open field, hip fluidity, acute change of direction, and blocking are all areas of concern. All of these are areas that can be addressed through training, technique, and proper coaching, but he will likely never acheive elite lateral acceleration given his size and current ability. Speed, big play ability, and hands are all natural to Williams and do not need to be addressed. He likely has the highest ceiling of any receiver in class, but must put in the appropriate time and effort to get there. His effort when blocking appears lackluster, which may be a big reason for how poor his blocking is each and every game. This is more important to some coaches than others, but he has cost his team by missing blocks entirely at times. The torn ACL is also extremely concerning, but should not lower his draft stock out of the first. He may not be the first receiver taken anymore, but should still be the best deep threat in this class upon return assuming he makes a full recovery.

NFL Projection:

Jameson Williams will most likely be the second read in a vertical passing offense. He will run mostly deeper routes, so he should not be the first read because the play needs time to develop. If on a team with another established receiver, Williams still may lead the team in yards despite only attaining 60-70 receptions. Any team that uses Williams as a possession receiver will not properly utilize his skillset or reap the rewards. He can still be the featured guy without being a target hog, and is most likely to make the biggest impact if he is not the focal point of every offensive play.