We continue our look at potential draftees that could land in Kansas City by checking out Virginia Tech RB Ryan Williams.
The Chiefs have held a private workout with Williams and he is projected to go in the late first to early second round range.
I have to say I find it quite interesting that the Chiefs held a private workout with a RB that could very well go in the first round. The Chiefs already have Jamaal Charles and while they obviously need to get him a partner in crime, I thought they would seek a value RB in the later rounds, if not through free agency. They could still do that of course, as the fact that they worked out Williams is no sure sign they plan on taking a RB high. In fact, it is probably highly unlikely since we know Todd Haley confirmed that Thomas Jones will return in 2011.
Williams is a really solid RB prospect. His first season starting for the Hokies was in 2009. Williams racked up 1,655 yards and 21 touchdowns while averaging 5.6 yards per carry. He also added 16 receptions for 180 yards and a TD.
Unfortunately Williams got hit with a hamstring injury in 2010 and missed a good chunk of the season. When he was on the field, however, he was effective rushing for 473 yards and 9 touchdowns. I wouldn’t place him in the injury prone category because hamstrings can negatively effect even the best athletes.
Surprisingly, Williams decided to come out for this year’s draft even though he was coming off an injury season and with two years of eligibility left. That hasn’t seemed to hurt his stock as he is being projected as a late first round, early second round pick.
Williams is not a big back. He is listed at 5-foot-9 1/2, 211 pounds and is sometimes compared to LeSean McCoy.
The scouting reports I read on this kid are all really favorable. He isn’t big but is apparently a pretty good interior runner. He gets a good pad level and bounces off tackles. He runs hard, always finishes his runs and can often make something out of nothing. The scouts think he has good vision, good cutback ability and solid balance.
He is quick off the edge and while he doesn’t process Jamaal Charles-type speed, he can usually beat the “Mike” linebaker off the edge. He is tough to tackle and is good at finding a crease. He is a pretty good pass catcher. He displays soft hands and is good at getting his hips turned up field after the catch.
The only real knocks I saw on Williams was that he needs to improve his blocking a bit and that he could do a better job protecting the football. He is a young back and is coming out early so chances are these attributes can be obtained.
While I really like what I am reading about this kid I don’t see many scenarios where the Chiefs actually draft him. For KC to get him they would likely have to grab him in the first round and that would seem colossally stupid when they have Jamaal Charles in town.
The Chiefs need to do their homework because you never know what will happen on draft day. Sometimes a great prospect will fall onto your lap when you didn’t expect him to. If a back the caliber of Williams fell to KC in the second round, they would seriously have to consider taking him. That being said, there is probably no way Williams ends up in KC. The running game is very important to what the Chiefs do on offense but they just can afford to take Williams when they have so many other needs. Drafting Williams would be the definition of a luxury pick and let’s face it, the Chiefs are not good enough to be drafting luxury picks in the first round.
What do you think Addicts? Where do you place RB on the priority list for KC?