A former Clemson wide receiver in the NFL is looking to “unleash” himself in 2022.
That’s what Los Angeles Chargers wideout Mike Williams wants to do this season, and he believes the team’s offense will be even better with quarterback Justin Herbert in Year 2 of head coach Brandon Staley’s offense.
“Yeah, fo sho. That’s the goal,” Williams said of “unleashing” himself this year in an interview on The Rich Eisen Show this week.
“Last year was the first year in our offense, so Year 2, it’s going to be a lot different. Everybody knows what to expect, everybody knows where everybody likes to get the ball at, knows the spots of the quarterbacks. So, it’s going to be a lot more fun. Year 1 was an amazing year for the offense, but Year 2, with everybody knowing the system, we’re looking forward to having a better year than last year.”
Last season, the Chargers ranked fourth in the NFL in total yards per game (390.2) and fifth in the league in points per game (27.9), and Williams had the best season of his career with career highs in receptions (76) and receiving yards (1,146), to go with nine touchdowns (one shy of his career high of 10 in 2018).
The Chargers rewarded Williams this offseason, signing their No. 7 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft to a three-year, $60 million contract extension.
“That just means that they believe in me,” Williams said of getting paid. “I was their first-round pick a few years ago, and for them to keep me around, that means I’m doing what I need to do. They believe in me, they trust me to go out there and make this team and offense better. So, it comes from all different parts.
“I came here not being able to do the things I wanted to do in the offense that was here when I first got here, not being able to be put in the right position to make plays, and then slowly being able to contribute and do what I do best and just getting the opportunity last year to be me. That was the main thing, letting me be Mike Williams, letting me go out there, play loose, play free and have fun, and everybody sees what I’m capable of doing if you allow me to do that. So, Year 2 in this offense, we’re just going to build on that.”
Before Williams inked that extension with the Chargers in March, he and a former Clemson teammate – current Las Vegas Raiders receiver Hunter Renfrow – had a conversation around the time of the 2022 Pro Bowl in early February.
“During the whole Pro Bowl, around the Pro Bowl time, me and Hunter were just talking,” Williams said. “He made the Pro Bowl, and I was just hitting him up, telling him congratulations. And he thought I was going to be a free agent and stuff, so he was just calling me, talking to me and stuff. But I told him it wasn’t going to get that far.”
Williams was asked if he was lobbied by Renfrow to come and join him in Las Vegas, before Williams signed his new deal and before star receiver Davante Adams ended up getting traded from the Packers to the Raiders in March.
“I wouldn’t call it that. It was just a friend phoning a friend,” Williams said.
“We were just talking to each other about the season and about maybe me getting in the Pro Bowl to be an alternate,” Williams added. “That was just what the conversation was about.”
Eisen also asked Williams why he thinks Clemson has turned into such a terrific receiver factory, producing current NFL wideouts like himself, Renfrow, DeAndre Hopkins (Arizona Cardinals), Tee Higgins (Cincinnati Bengals), Sammy Watkins (Green Bay Packers), Amari Rodgers (Packers) and Ray-Ray McCloud (San Francisco 49ers), to name some.
“I think they do a good job of recruiting,” Williams said. “They bring in the right guys for the system, and they bring in a lot of players who can dominate on the outside. So, that’s the main thing, and we all kind of learned from each other. Some of us have been there with each other, so we had kind of all picked stuff from each other’s game and got better like that. They do a good job of recruiting and developing those guys over there, so we just keep it going.”
In his NFL career (2017-21), Williams has racked up 227 catches for 3,662 yards and 26 touchdowns.
A native of Vance, S.C., Williams compiled 177 receptions for 2,727 yards and 21 touchdowns over 42 games (30 starts) in his career at Clemson from 2013-16. He bounced back from a season-ending injury in the 2015 opener to lead the Tigers in receptions (98), receiving yards (1,361) and receiving touchdowns (11) in 2016.
You can watch Williams’ full interview on The Rich Eisen Show below:
–Photo for this article courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
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