Why Savion Williams is such a terrific fit with Matt LaFleur and Packers

At some point while watching the 2024 tape of Green Bay Packers' third-round pick Savion Williams, the thought arose.

"Can this guy play real snaps at wide receiver at the NFL level, and why did the Packers spend a top-100 pick on a gadget player?" Williams' 2024 tape is a wild ride.

While a dynamic weapon, Williams fought the football on a high percentage of throws down the field and eventually turned into a full-time Wildcat quarterback over the final two months of TCU's season.

I admittedly left the viewing session far lower on Williams as a prospect than I started.But a deeper examination of Williams' playing career at TCU opened new doors and helped showcase why the 87th overall pick is such an incredible fit with Matt LaFleur and the Packers.

Williams is far more than just a gadget weapon.

He has gadget value, sure.

But so does Christian Watson and Jayden Reed.

At various points in his TCU career, Williams showcased an ability to win vertically and make contested catches on deep balls, win on intermediate in-breaking or comeback routes leading to YAC, and win in the short, quick game.

At no point did Williams ever really put all three aspects together during a season.

But teams like the Packers know he can do everything, and that's important to know as he enters a professional offense.

A review of his 2022 tape shows a player who could play something resembling the Watson role in the Packers offense.

Williams caught seven passes thrown over 20 yards and was 4-for-4 on contested throws over 20 yards in the air.

While a rotational player, he consistently won with speed vertically or an ability to adjust to the football deep and make the catch in traffic.

At 6-4 and 222 pounds, with timed speed in the 4.4s, Williams has the combo of size and speed that NFL defenses will have to respect on vertical routes.

LaFleur's offense requires this gravitational force to draw away coverage from underneath players, and Williams has it, although probably not to the same strength as Watson.

In 2023, Williams ran fewer go routes and more intermediate routes, and he shined as a catch-and-go target.

He caught 16 of 23 targets between 10-19 yards downfield and went 5-for-6 on contested catches.

On in-breakers and comeback routes, Williams showed he can come back to the football or make a catch in stride and go to work after the catch.

These are important routes in the LaFleur offense.

The Packers want to create throwing windows and have receivers make catches in space in the middle of the field.

Williams can create separation and make tough catches between the hashes.

And he's a big, strong target made for the tough, dangerous work in the middle of the field.

His final season was a showcase of tackle-breaking ability and gadget value.

By midseason, TCU was 3-3 and struggling.

One part of the fix was leaning into Williams as a gadget weapon, both in the quick passing game and as a Wildcat quarterback.

TCU took off down the stretch, winning six of their final seven games.

Williams' dominance with the ball in his hands was a big reason why.

Over the final two months of the college football season, only Ashton Jeanty was harder to tackle.

While Williams received fewer and fewer chances to do true receiver things, TCU's decision was easy to understand.

They lacked a dominant run game or quarterback but had a dynamic playmaker in Williams.

He got the ball 111 times and created almost 1,000 total yards and 12 scores, both team highs.

Williams is a good lesson on player scouting.

It's difficult to watch 2-3 games during a single season and get a full assessment of a player.

TCU completely transformed how they played offense down the stretch of 2024, and it affected the evaluation of Williams as a receiver.

He is far from refined as a true receiver, and he'll need development as a 23-year-old prospect entering the NFL, but the ability to do many things exists inside Williams, and it's now on LaFleur and the Packers to get the most out of it.

Williams can be a deep threat down the field.

He can succeed on the staple intermediate routes of the Packers offense.

And everyone knows how dangerous he is with the ball in his hands.

Savion Williams of 2024 looked like a very specific fit for the Packers.

Savion Williams of 2022, 2023 AND 2024 looks like an incredibly versatile fit.This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Why Savion Williams is such a terrific fit with Matt LaFleur and Packers.

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