Kyle Williams nabs 49-yard TD vs. LV

Williams logged a pass route on 16 of the Patriots’ 29 drop backs on the day and had one of the longest plays of the game for a struggling New England passing attack. Williams will need more playing time if he’s going to be viable for fantasy purposes. For now Mack Hollins appears to be the top wideout in the Patriots offense.

Douglas made the first catch of the game for the Patriots, but was silent the rest of the day. The 25-year-old is a low-yardage slot receiver who tends to get schemed targets when he is on the field. Douglas tallied the third-most snaps of all Patriots wide receivers on the day but will find it hard to achieve fantasy relevancy in an offense that utilizes multiple receivers in several different ways. Second-year receiver Kyle Williams also saw a pair of targets, catching one for 10 yards. Neither Williams or Douglas are anything more than deep league dart throws for Week 3 against the Jaguars.

The issue is that Williams “didn’t display much craftiness in his route running during training camp this summer.” He ended up “buried on the depth chart” and played just 12 snaps in the opener. Still, Graff notes, Williams has shown an ability to “release off the line of scrimmage with ease, and run straight, deep routes for big completions.” Getting Williams more involved makes sense, but the Patriots have been reluctant to do so thus far in his career. He can be stashed on deep-leagues benches for a week or so, but positive results are not guaranteed.

This is the performance Williams needed to have following WR Kayshon Boutte’s trade to the Texans. The Patriots still have a crowded wide receiver room, but at least one competitor has been removed from the equation. Williams delivered a 10-yard catch on a curl route on the Patriots’ third play from scrimmage. Three plays later, he shook his defender at the line of scrimmage and took off down the left sideline. He hauled in the pass from QB Tommy DeVito in stride and waltzed into the end zone for a 45-yard score. Williams does not yet need to be drafted in 12-team leagues, vying for the third wide receiver spot on the Patriots’ depth chart. He could be a worthwhile waiver wire add early on, though.

It’s hard to imagine Williams having a fantasy-relevant role given the fact that the Patriots went out and added A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs this offseason, but Graff believes the second-year receiver will have some sort of role in the offense this season. As a rookie, Williams caught 10 passes for 209 yards and three touchdowns, and he went for 2-37-1 on three targets in last week’s preseason game against the Colts. Williams’ role in the offense could be worth monitoring in-season, but there’s no reason to rush to add him to your draft day plans.

Williams also focused on building lower-body strength this offseason, adding five to eight pounds in the process. He believes this strength could help him develop as a centerfield target, which is the primary thing to note for fantasy purposes. A 2019 Rotoworld study showed that targets thrown over the middle, 10-plus yards downfield, are more valuable than those thrown along the sideline at an equivalent depth. Williams went 0-for-5 on centerfield targets as a rookie. Improving his play over the middle will help him challenge for a role in the Patriots’ starting three-wide receiver set. Williams also said he hopes to be more consistent, build chemistry with QB Drake Maye and master the playbook this offseason.

A third-round rookie hype merchant in an offense many were expecting to be better, Williams ended up struggling to get on the field, catching just two passes across his first nine games. He was more involved down the stretch, but still finished the regular campaign with all of 10 grabs. He turned that limited work into more than 20 yards per catch and three touchdowns, but Williams was a strict role player in an offense that has fellow field-stretchers Mack Hollins and Kayshon Boutte. With both those wideouts likely back for 2026, Williams could have a difficult time commanding a bigger role. He turns 24 in November, making him a lower-upside hold in dynasty leagues.

With Kayshon Boutte out for the week and Mack Hollins on IR, Williams was tasked with WR1 duties in New England this week. He led the team in routes and logged a respectable 20 percent target share. Williams didn’t do much with the extra opportunities and even committed one egregious drop. The misplay broke Drake Maye’s completion streak at 11 to open the game. Boutte should be back next week. He will reclaim the No. 1 wideout role once cleared, meaning Williams won’t be on the fantasy radar for Week 18.

Boutte did not practice all week and is in some danger of being shut down for the remainder of the regular season, particularly if the Patriots don’t need to battle for seeing in Week 18. His absence will leave Kyle Williams with a big role against the Jets.

This is a bit surprising. Douglas exited Week 16 after suffering a hamstring injury. His early-week participation puts him on track to play. Hollins is not so lucky. The lanky speedster was sidelined on Wednesday by an abdominal injury, as was WR Kayshon Boutte (concussion). Rookie WR Kyle Williams would benefit if Hollins and Boutte are sidelined this week.