A former Clemson Tigers standout earned NFL Rookie of the Week honors after his first career regular season game.
On Thursday, wide receiver Antonio Williams was voted the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week for his performance in the Washington Commanders' season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1 at Lincoln Financial Field.
Williams led Washington with 64 receiving yards and a touchdown in the team's 24-22 loss. He caught all four targets from quarterback Jayden Daniels, and his four catches tied that of veteran receiver Stefon Diggs.
Also on Thursday, PFF's NFL rookie rankings had Williams as its highest-graded player from Week 1 with a 91.2 overall grade.
Gordon McGuinness of Pro Football Focus said:
"Williams was impressively productive
despite playing just 11 receiving snaps in his first regular-season action. He caught four passes for 64 yards and averaged 5.82 yards per route run, a mark bettered only by Zay Flowers of the Baltimore Ravens among wide receivers with at least 10 receiving snaps in Week 1."
The Commanders selected the former Clemson and Dutch Fork High School star with the 71st overall pick in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Williams had 55 catches for 604 yards and four touchdowns in nine games as a senior in 2025. He played in 43 games and made 38 starts in four seasons at Clemson and finished his collegiate career with 208 receptions for 2,336 receiving yards and 21 touchdowns. He also had 187 rushing yards as a Tiger.
Williams will look to follow up a strong Week 1 debut when the Commanders visit the Dallas Cowboys at 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday in Arlington. The game will be televised on Fox.
.@a_williams2022 is the first @pepsi Rookie of the Week of the season! pic.twitter.com/bl9is6LAfk
— NFL (@NFL) September 17, 2026
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This article originally appeared on Clemson Wire: Former Clemson football starter voted NFL Rookie of the Week
