Xavier Williams is a restricted free agent for the Arizona Cardinals, but the Kansas City Chiefs decided to have him visit anyway.
The Kansas City Chiefs are doing their best to check out anyone and everyone for defensive line help on the free agent market and that means not only unrestricted free agents but also those that come with a few strings attached. That’s certainly the case for Xavier Williams, the latest free agent to visit Arrowhead Stadium.
The Chiefs brought in Williams for a visit, per Field Yates, on Sunday to spend some time with the Arizona Cardinals defensive lineman. Williams is not an unrestricted free agent, however. He is restricted, which means that the Chiefs would have to sign Williams to a deal, if both sides are willing to do so, and then hope that the Cardinals decide to let him leave instead of matching the agreed upon offer.
The Chicago Bears just went through this same thing with popular cornerback Kyle Fuller, the older brother of Chiefs cornerback Kendall Fuller. The Green Bay Packers signed Fuller to a lucrative extension, but the Bears matched which left the Packers’ efforts null and void.
Williams was a rotational body for the Cardinals last season, but he’s been getting more and more reps each year in Arizona. Last year, he earned a positive 80.8 grade for the Cards from Pro Football Focus and, as noted in this article, he was particularly adept against the run.
"With the potential of Williams re-signing, they would bring back the league’s leader in run-stop percentage among defensive tackles as he hauled down 16 run-stops on 110 snaps in run defense in 2017."
Williams had 20 total tackles in 11 games played last year for the Cardinals, including a forced fumble.