James Williams, Washington State
Position:RB Height:5-foot-9 Weight:197
Combine Results
40 Time:4.58sec Bench Press:NA Vertical Jump: 36.5in Broad Jump: 118in 3 cone: 7.01 20yd Shuttle: 4.25 60ydd Shuttle: 12.2
Strengths
- Very elusive runner
- excellent jump cut ability
- receiving ability out of the backfield with good hands
- willingness to run between the tackles despite being a smaller back
- was not asked to run routes in college, but is athletic enough to do so
- top 4 in this class in both 3-cone and 20-yd shuttle
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Weaknesses
- route running is unproven, he ran mostly swing routes and check-downs in college
- profiles as a third-down back, but needs to work on pass-pro to secure that position at the next level
- block recognition and vision
- a tendency to bounce runs outside too often
- majority of his runs were in spread shotgun formations
NFL Player Comparision | James White (NE)
2019 Rookie Draft Projection | Mid 2nd round pick, higher with the right landing spot
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Bottom Line
James Williams is one of the easier players to comp as nearly every draft analysis and scout has compared him to James White. His ability as a receiver jumps out at you when you look at his numbers with two 70-plus catch seasons, however, the majority were on swing routes, check downs and screens. He will need to develop a larger route tree as a third-down back in the NFL, but his athletic profile suggests he can.
He had a strong Combine with some of the better 3-cone and 20-yd-shuttle scores, but I would have liked to have seen a better 40-time, but it is in no way detrimental at a 4.58. I was surprised to see him run down the middle as often as he did in my film study. In fact, in a game against Washington, he had three straight inside hand-offs inside the 3-yard-line before finding his way into the end-zone.
He has an excellent jump cut and his change of direction is near elite level, but his initial burst after the cut leaves a little to be desired. His vision and block recognition can also use some work, as he routinely misread blocks and ran straight into the defender or he didn’t use his change of direction ability to set up blocks well. All-in-all, James Williams is a great PPR prospect for fantasy leagues, and in the right landing spot, could see his value rise.
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