The New England Patriots wide receiver room has already seen turnover this offseason. There could be more coming.
In the midst of the changes, second-year wide receiver Kyle Williams is focused on one thing.
“Where my feet are,” he said Wednesday.
As a rookie, Williams found himself in a crowded receiver room after being selected 69th overall. That led to him playing just 31 percent of the team’s offensive snaps and catching 10 passes during the regular season.
There were flashes, however, as he averaged
more than 20 yards across those receptions and found the end zone three times.
Speaking at the NFL Combine in February, head coach Mike Vrabel said unprompted that he was excited to see what Williams could now do entering Year 2. The receiver is looking forward to it as well.
“I would say that me now from my rookie year is going to be night and day, for sure,” said Williams. “I learned a lot just by being able to sit back. I had great vets in the room, I had a great coaching staff, like just a great team overall that just helped me get through my rookie stage.”
In order to improve on the field, Williams set a handful of goals for himself entering this offseason. Among the biggest priorities was to improve his play strength by developing his lower body.
After playing around 185 pounds “soaking wet” last season, the 23-year old added five-to-eight pounds this offseason behind plenty of protein, fruit snacks, and a “little bit of candy.”
“Play strength was definitely something that I wanted to emphasize,” Williams said. “I knew that I needed to get my lower half stronger and bulk up a little bit, coming across the middle, getting off press and all that type of stuff. So that was one of my biggest emphasis, mobility and just putting on a little weight.”
Williams has been a consistent presence during the team’s voluntary offseason program and will soon bring that progress to the field with OTAs beginning next week, where his goals remain straightforward.
“Just consistency throughout my whole game,” he said. “Building chemistry with Drake and everything. Being able to learn the playbook. Just whatever they need for me. Just being able to execute at a high level.”
