Near the beginning of training camp, it looked like Kyle Williams might have been on borrowed time with the New England Patriots ahead of his second NFL season. But now? Not only does it look like he might stick around; he might actually become a big part of their offense.
During a training camp conference on Friday, head coach Mike Vrabel spoke highly of the Baltimore native and made it clear that the team has high hopes for him.
"I really, really know that Kyle’s gonna help us. His speed is gonna help us. And I don't wanna use this and get this to be overblown, but I'm going to use the word scheme. I mean, he's got a skill set, right? We're gonna find ways to get him the ball, and it may be out of outside of just a normal installation play, but that's my responsibility, that's Josh [McDaniels’] responsibility, that's Todd [Downing’s] responsibility," Vrabel said.
"I know that he is gonna be a large part of what we're gonna do, and those opportunities will continue to come. His release skills, his speed, his vertical speed, those are all things that we have to continue to take advantage of as we progress."
Kyle Williams has potential, but he has a lot of work cut out for him
There's a lot to like about Williams. As Vrabel mentioned, he is incredibly speedy and has great release skills (which could make him a real asset to Drake Maye, who has quickly turned into one of the best deep-ball throwers in the NFL).
Plus, Williams showed some flashes last year. He had a 72-yard touchdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 10, and he caught an impressive 33-yard touchdown against the New York Giants in Week 13. And given that he's only 23 years old, he still has a lot of untapped potential.
At the same time, though, Williams is going to have a hard time climbing New England's depth chart. He's pretty obviously not going to leapfrog A.J. Brown, Romeo Doubs, or Kayshon Boutte (unless he ultimately gets traded), and it's going to be tough to imagine him beating out DeMario Douglas or Mack Hollins.
It would be worth it for New England to keep Williams around for another season and aim to develop him even further. He has a lot of traits and skills that aren't teachable that could make him a real contributor at the NFL level, and if he can figure out the rest of his game, then the sky is the limit for what he can become.
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