Mike

Williams

Williams had an 18-yard catch to set the Jets up in the red zone for Garrett Wilson’s touchdown, but was largely irrelevant in a game where Aaron Rodgers dropped back 57 times. He was also the intended target on Rodgers’ final interception, a back-shoulder ball that Stephon Gilmore stepped in front of. Williams will be hard to trust — with just one 50-yard game to his name this season — against the Bills in Week 6. He’s clearly behind Allen Lazard as New York’s WR2 as things stand.

Williams’ playing time was ramped up from Week 3, just as beat writers had predicted. Williams ran a route on 37 of the Jets’ 54 drop backs and nearly came down with a touchdown from Aaron Rodgers. He led all New York pass catchers in receiving. With Rodgers and Garrett Wilson struggling to find chemistry, Williams could be the beneficiary in the coming weeks. He has a rough matchup in Week 5 against the Vikings.

The team has increased Williams’ workload in each of the past two games, including last Thursday against the Patriots, when Williams caught three of his four targets for 34 yards. Operating almost exclusively on the boundary, Williams nearly came down with a short touchdown against New England. He could be in for a busy game in Week 4 against the Broncos since Garrett Wilson will presumably see shadow coverage from shutdown CB Patrick Surtain II.

Williams has now gone from zero targets to one to four. His missed connection was a third down end zone shot. Better days could be ahead, though this is a run-based offense still establishing its passing game targets tree. It could be a while before Williams pushes for every-week WR4 consideration.

It was a typical Mike Williams catch, a jump ball in tight coverage to earn a huge first-down conversion. We know the 29-year-old is still not fully healthy after season-ending surgery last year, but the Jets could use another option across from Garrett Wilson, and Williams could find himself in a crucial role in the passing attack in a few weeks. It’s hard to put him in the lineup until we see that he’s back to full health though.

Williams was a full participant in all three sessions last week but only ran a route on 19 percent of his team’s dropbacks. Head coach Robert Saleh told us he would be on a pitch count to open the year, so his limited role didn’t come as a surprise. Fantasy managers will need to see a full complement of snaps before they can comfortably get Williams in their lineups.

Williams saw fewer snaps than most assumed in Week 1, ending the night with under 10 total offensive snaps after seeing just four in the first half. Rodgers and the Jets will eventually need his services on the field after Garrett Wilson, Breece Hall, and Allen Lazard commanded 26 targets on just 29 team pass attempts.

With their eyes fixed on the entirety of the season, the Jets don’t plan to give Williams a full complement of snaps to begin the year. Williams is returning from a season-end knee injury that he suffered in Week 3 of last season and only recently began practicing. Fantasy managers who are considering using him as a third or fourth fantasy option in Week 1 against the 49ers should do so with caution, as it’s possible Williams provides minimal production in his first game back.

Saleh said it “wouldn’t be fair” to expect Williams to be 100 percent healthy in the team’s season opener but added that the veteran receiver will “be plenty available to make his mark felt.” Williams is returning from a torn ACL he suffered in Week 3 of last season and has reportedly had a nice few days of practice since joining the team this week. Fantasy managers should approach Williams with caution for the season opener. While it sounds like he’s a near lock to see the field, he could be a true boom-or-bust play in his first return to action.

It’s perfectly-timed progression with the Jets’ opener now less than two weeks away. The 29-year-old could still be up against it to be fully ready for Week 1, but at worst, he’s going to miss a game or two. Most likely is that he’ll be active for the opener but perhaps on a snap count.