Mike Williams (Clemson) - Pro Football Rumors

AFC Notes: Pats, Gronk, Brady, Dolphins

October 10th, 2017 at 4:52pm CST by Zachary Links

The Patriots‘ decision to deactivate Rob Gronkowski for Thursday night’s game could cost him major money at the end of the season, ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss points out. Gronkowski has played in 70.5% of the team’s snaps this season, which puts him on pace for the lowest possible incentives tier of $6.75MM. He can still reach the first ($10.75MM) and second tiers ($8.75MM) based on receptions, receiving yards, touchdowns, or All-Pro selection, but those markers will also be hard to reach without a certain volume of snaps.

Here’s more from around the AFC:

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady suffered what is thought to be an AC joint sprain in his left, non-throwing shoulder, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). He says he’ll play on Sunday against the Jets.
The Dolphins are expected to bring back assistant Dave DeGuglielmo to take over as the team’s new offensive line coach, Jeff Darlington of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link).
Despite some recent optimism, it’s premature to say that Chargers first-round pick Mike Williams will be ready to make his NFL debut next week, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
Cody Latimer, one of the Broncos‘ top special teamers, underwent a blood injection procedure in his right knee and could be out for the next game or so, Mike Klis of 9 News writes. Latimer has excelled as a kick returner so far this year with an average of 28.4 per attempt. He’s also a gunner on punt and kickoff coverage.
Former NFL safety Taylor Mays has signed with the CFL’s Roughriders, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The former second-round pick was most recently with the Bengals.

Chargers WR Mike Williams To Debut In Week 6

October 8th, 2017 at 9:53am CST by Rory Parks

Chargers rookie wide receiver Mike Williams is set to make his NFL debut against the division-rival Raiders next week, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Williams, whom Los Angeles selected with the seventh overall pick in this year’s draft, missed the team’s first four contests with a back injury, and he will miss today’s matchup with the Giants. However, barring any setbacks, he will finally take the field in Week 6.

The back problems, of course, not only forced Williams to miss the first few games of the regular season, but it kept him on the sidelines for the entirety of training camp as well. But he has been practicing in pads since Week 2, as Schefter writes, so he may be ready to make an impact right away.

Williams, a Clemson product, caught 98 passes for 1,361 yards and 13 touchdowns for the national champion Tigers last year. It was believed at one point that his back could require season-ending surgery, but since that time, surgery was taken off the table and Los Angeles removed Williams from the PUP list so that he would not be forced to miss the first eight weeks of the regular season.

All reports for the past several months have been positive, which is welcome news for a Chargers club that has stumbled to an 0-4 record. While the playoffs are likely out of reach for the Bolts at this point, a significant contribution from Williams in 2017 would be a nice silver lining.

West Notes: Raiders, Mahomes, Donald, Bolts

September 7th, 2017 at 6:09pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Raiders decided to place second-round pick Obi Melifonwu on IR earlier this week, but the team is not counting on the safety missing his entire rookie season. Melifonwu is expected to return after eight weeks and be one of Oakland’s two IR-DTR players, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The UConn product is recovering from knee surgery and will use the season’s first two months to rehab. The Raiders have seen their top two draft picks struggle to see the field due to injuries thus far; Gareon Conley missed most of Oakland’s preseason work due to a shin malady. Both are eyed as contributors in a secondary that struggled throughout 2016.

Here’s the latest coming out of the West divisions before the defending AFC West champion Chiefs debut against the Super Bowl champion Patriots.

For now, new Cardinals guard Alex Boone will serve as a backup. “He’s just learning,” coach Bruce Arians told reporters (Twitter link via Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com). “We’ll see. Right now, it’d probably have to be an injury or someone really fail badly. … We’ll see. Right now, it’d probably have to be an injury or someone really fail badly.” Boone started for five straight seasons, lining up as a first-teamer for the 49ers and Vikings.
Despite Patrick Mahomes‘ impressive preseason, the Chiefs‘ plan remains to shelve the rookie quarterback throughout the 2017 season, Rapoport notes (video link). Rapoport also said the possibility of Mahomes sitting to start next season remains in play, adding the team drafted the Texas Tech product knowing he’d be a one- or two-year project. Rapoport adds the Chiefs believed Mahomes was the draft’s best quarterback and they thought four teams would pull the trigger to select him had they not made the trade up to No. 10. Alex Smith‘s contract may also dictate the franchise’s decision. The Chiefs can save $17MM by moving on from their longtime starter after this season, but it’s clear they see a firm line between Smith and Mahomes’ present readiness levels.
Chargers rookie Mike Williams is now off the PUP list but has yet to resume running routes full speed, Anthony Lynn said (via Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk). Recovering from a back injury, Williams has resumed catching passes. Rapoport reported the first-round pick’s likely return date will be in October.
If the Rams are going to sign Aaron Donald to an extension, the deal will have to make the defensive lineman the NFL’s highest-paid defender. Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com writes the team understands this. Von Miller‘s six-year, $114.6MM contract represents that standard presently, and Ndamukong Suh‘s six-year, $114MM Dolphins deal is the high-water mark for interior defenders. Los Angeles is not expected to have Donald this week as his holdout stretches into Month 3.
Sebastian Janikowski‘s small pay cut — from $4MM to $3MM this season — induced Rapoport to suggest this adjustment would free up space for a potential Donald Penn payment (Twitter link). The Raiders left tackle recently returned to the team and is entering the final year of his contract, but it’s clear the 34-year-old blocker is not exactly a content employee.

Mike Williams To Come Off PUP List

September 2nd, 2017 at 1:48pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Chargers will take Mike Williams off the PUP list in advance of the regular season, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.

A lingering back injury had the first-round pick’s rookie season in doubt, but this move signals the Chargers believe he will be ready to contribute early in the season. Williams remaining on the PUP list would have shelved him for the first six weeks of the Bolts’ season.

The most recent news on the former Clemson star indicated a possible October return was in the cards, and Rapoport hears (Twitter link) that’s still the tentative plan. The herniated disc Williams suffered is still not believed to require surgery; he’s been rehabbing it for several weeks now.

Williams missed Los Angeles’ training camp and did not play during the preseason. The No. 7 overall pick returning would strengthen a Chargers offense that’s also getting Keenan Allen back. Allen, Mike Williams, Tyrell Williams and Travis Benjamin would quietly form one of the league’s most intriguing wideout contingents — one that could be the deepest of Philip Rivers‘ career.

Chargers’ Mike Williams Eyeing Oct. Debut

August 14th, 2017 at 12:38pm CST by Zachary Links

The Chargers are eyeing an October debut for first-round pick wide receiver Mike Williams, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com hears. That’s a good sign for Williams considering that the team was uncertain about whether he would be able to play at all in 2017.

The Chargers selected Williams with the No. 7 overall pick in this year’s draft. Los Angeles is hoping to slot Williams in as the team’s No. 2 wide receiver this year, providing support to top target Keenan Allen. For however long he is out, the Bolts will have to rely more heavily on Travis Benjamin, Tyrell Williams, and Dontrelle Inman.

Los Angeles will be closely monitoring Williams over the next few weeks to get a better handle on his timeline. If Williams needs to rest until Week 7 (October 22 vs. the Broncos), then starting the season the PUP list could be the way to go. However, if they think he can take the field sooner, they may refrain from doing that.

Williams, a 6’4″, 218-pound receiver, turned in a 98-catch, 1,361-yard, 11-touchdown season in 2016. The Chargers are hoping to see what he can do at the next level sooner rather than later.

AFC Notes: Bolts, Ravens, Jets, Steelers

August 8th, 2017 at 9:04pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Chargers first-round wide receiver Mike Williams, who has been dealing with a back injury since May, is “running” and “doing well,” head coach Anthony Lynn told reporters, including Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com. Lynn suggested last week that Williams might not play at all this year, which came after the Chargers announced that the ex-Clemson star will miss all of training camp. However, they continue to hold out hope he’ll be healthy in time for the regular season, writes Eric Williams.

Newly signed Ravens offensive tackle Austin Howard hasn’t practiced with the team since inking a three-year, $16.5MM deal last Friday, and it’s unclear why, per Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun. Howard underwent offseason shoulder surgery, so his recovery from that procedure could be at the root of the delay, notes Zrebiec. For his part, head coach John Harbaugh is content to leave Howard’s fate “in the trainer’s hands.”
Free agent long snapper Andrew DePaola visited the Jets on Tuesday, tweets ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini, who relays that incumbent Tanner Purdum hasn’t looked great in camp. Purdum has been the Jets’ long snapper since 2010, so even though his position isn’t glamorous, it would be notable for the club to make a change there. DePaola was the Buccaneers’ long snapper for the previous three seasons. They non-tendered him in March.
Center Mike Matthews, whom the Steelers waived Tuesday, will miss four to six months with a torn patellar tendon, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (Twitter link). Matthews, the son of Hall of Fame offensive lineman Bruce Matthews, will go on injured reserve if another team doesn’t claim him via waivers.
With Cairo Santos set to miss a week-plus with a groin injury, the Chiefs worked out free agent kickers John Lunsford and Conrad Ukropina on Tuesday, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). It doesn’t appear the Chiefs will sign either, though, given that they added fellow kicker Sam Ficken after auditioning Lunsford and Ukropina.

Latest On Chargers’ Mike Williams

July 31st, 2017 at 9:05am CST by Zachary Links

We have been hearing conflicting information on the status of Chargers rookie Mike Williams for the last few weeks. The wide receiver refuted talk that he could be out for the season, but head coach Anthony Lynn now admits that Williams’ could be out all year long.

“I’m hopeful that it’s not [a season-ending injury], but who knows? It could be,” Lynn said (via Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times).

On Sunday, the Chargers announced that Williams will be out for all of training camp, which at minimum is a bad sign for his early season availability. At one point, the word was that Williams may require season-ending surgery on his herniated disc but the Bolts, for now, are hoping to avoid such a drastic measure.

Losing Williams for the entire season would sting, but the Chargers could hypothetically withstand the loss with Keenan Allen, Travis Benjamin, Tyrell Williams, and Dontrelle Inman in the fold. However, if Allen gets injured again – he’s missed 23 games in the last two years – the Bolts will be left paper thin at wide receiver.

Mike Williams To Miss Training Camp

July 30th, 2017 at 12:11pm CST by Rory Parks

We learned on Friday that Chargers rookie wideout Mike Williams would begin training camp on the PUP list, but the team announced today that he will miss all of training camp.

The Chargers’ press release, passed along by ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter), says Williams met with team doctors yesterday and will continue with the doctors’ plan to rehab and strengthen his back. As Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets, Williams has progressed past the “rest” phase of his recovery and will move on the rehab phase.

Needless to say, the fact that Williams will miss the entirety of his first training camp is a disappointing development for Los Angeles. Theoretically, he could still be ready for Week 1 of the regular season, but that is now very much in doubt, and even if he is able to play, it is fair to question how effective he would be without the benefit of training camp.

Earlier this month, it was believed that Williams may need season-ending surgery, but while surgery apparently was an option at one point, Williams improved enough since then to take surgery off the table for the time being. Luckily for the Chargers, they should have enough wide receiver depth to overcome Williams’ unavailability. The team boasts Keenan Allen, Travis Benjamin, Tyrell Williams, and Dontrelle Inman, giving the club ample weapons to withstand Williams’ recovery period.

AFC Notes: Broncos, Bolts, Fins, Ravens

July 28th, 2017 at 6:51pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Broncos quarterback Chad Kelly will likely spend his rookie season on injured reserve, per Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post (Twitter link), who indicates 2017 will be something of a redshirt campaign for Kelly. This year’s Mr. Irrelevant, Kelly is currently on the non-football injury list after undergoing wrist surgery in April. With Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch set to act as Denver’s top two quarterbacks, Kelly wouldn’t have played a role this season anyway, so the Broncos would rather not waste a roster spot. Denver will have to wait until final cutdowns to move Kelly to IR, or else risk losing him to waivers.

Latest On Chargers Rookie WR Mike Williams

July 22nd, 2017 at 8:53pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Conflicting reports emerged this week regarding the health status of Chargers rookie wideout Mike Williams, and today Williams attempted to clarify the nature of his back injury, according to James Palmer of NFL.com (Twitter link).

“I’m good,” Williams said. “Everything good. The back situation. That was some false information being released. I don’t know who released it, but everything is good.”

While Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reported Wednesday that Williams may require season-ending surgery for a herniated disc, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com indicated that surgery wasn’t on the table for the No. 7 overall pick. Still, Williams is likely to begin training on active/PUP, per Mike Garafolo of NFL.com, which theoretically means he could start the regular season on reserve/PUP, which requires an absence of six weeks.

Williams is “feeling better” following a recent epidural, tweets Garafolo, but even if he is forced to miss time, Los Angeles should have enough wide receiver depth to overcome his unavailability. The Chargers boast Keenan Allen, Travis Benjamin, Tyrell Williams, and Dontrelle Inman, giving the club ample weapons to withstand Williams’ hypothetical recovery period.