Kyle Williams has a special trick as a wide receiver
That was on display during the preseason, as the second-year wide receiver caught three touchdowns all on the same route: a go ball.
But Williams knows his game has more than just that one trick.
“I’ve been hearing that my whole life man, so I wouldn’t really say it’s a chip on my shoulder,” Williams said. “I know what I can do. I know I’m more than just a vertical guy. Whatever my role is that’s my role and I’m gonna accept it.”
Williams’ elite release
package and vertical speed make him a big-time threat along the outside. That was his role for much of last season, as one-third of his routes were go balls — one of the highest rates in football. Among the few players with a higher rate was recently traded wide receiver Kayshon Boutte.
The 2025 third-round pick’s ability to win deep will continue to be an asset for the Patriots’ offense — especially with Boutte’s departure. While the team spent the offseason upgrading the wide receiver depth chart, A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs are not specifically burners at the position.
Quarterback Drake Maye is also one of the best deep-ball throwers in the NFL.
Entering his second season, however, Williams is adding to his game. This offseason, the 23-year old spent time running more intermediate routes and moving around the formation after spending virtually all of last season outside and on the ball.
“In college, I really wasn’t exposed to too many intermediate routes. So now I’m getting that opportunity to do it,” Williams said this summer. “So Year 1 to Year 2 it’s definitely been night and day. Now it’s just that ball finding me across the middle and everything so I can really showcase what I’ve been working on.”
Mastering those route concepts in Josh McDaniels’ offense is no easy task for a wide receiver. Williams noted that the on-the-fly decision-making process was the biggest challenge, but was pleased looking back on his training camp with how his mindset developed throughout the process.
“It’s time on task, right?,” wide receiver coach Todd Downing said. “And there are some things that collegiately, maybe Kyle was able to do, because he was just more physically talented than some of the defenses that he was going against. And you get it this league, and I’ve always said that the closer you are to the football, the faster things happen.
“I think Kyle is starting to get more and more comfortable with that speed and that urgency that it takes to make the right decisions in there. So, I’m excited where he’s at and I love the approach that he’s taken — a do anything he’s asked approach, and he’s done well with his [opportunities].”
As the Patriots are just a week away from their regular season opener against the Seattle Seahawks, Williams is ready to keep growing and find his footing in a talented wide receiver room.
“I feel like I bring a lot, just as much as the other guys do,” Williams said. “So, I mean, I don’t really want to single myself out, but as a whole room, I feel like we nasty. I feel like we got a nasty group.”
