New York Giants Draft Prospect: SAF James Williams

New defensive coordinator Shane Bowen puts a lot on his safeties. So, if the Giants need help at that spot, what could Miamis James Williams bring?

James Williams, DS

Height: 6’4
Weight: 230 lbs.
Hands: 9 2/8”
Arms: 33 ⅛”
Wingspan: 79⅝”
Class: Junior
School: Miami
Stats

A highly regarded five-star prospect out of the illustrious American Heritage High School in Opa Locka, Florida, where he was the fourth Floridian prospect and the first safety during the 2021 recruiting class. Williams was pursued by most football powerhouse schools and decided to stay in Florida and play for the Hurricanes.  

Miami ran a lot of two-read coverages - which is a match defense used by the new Giants’ defensive coordinator Shane Bowen. Due to his unique build, Williams was aligned all across the defense. His tackling suffered the further he was from the line of scrimmage; he had a missed tackle rate of 17.4% through three seasons at Miami. He attended the Reese’s Senior Bowl, where he operated as a safety and a linebacker.

Strengths

• Unique MISMATCH size for a safety
• Thumper with a long thick build
• Sufficient athletic ability to play safety at the NFL level
• Shows good closing burst when he is square to target and processes the threat
• His long strides help his recovery speed
• Solid angles of attack in the box
• Solid eyes from depth over the middle of the field
• Angles were better the closer to the LOS he operated
• Length/size helped him be annoying in coverage - ripped balls away from receivers
• Played through the catch point well
• Great play strength
• Huge pop on contact - will hurt people with his hits
• Good competitor and a tough overall player
• Versatile skill set

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Weaknesses

• Sub-optimal fluidity for a safety
• Clunky transitions
• Isn’t slow, but isn’t fast - adequate overall speed is amplified by long strides
• Needs to be more active with his feet to better position/leverage himself
• Has to get better at tackling - 17.4% missed tackle rate
• 37 total missed tackles in three seasons
• Must learn to close width and come to balance to secure tackles
• Adequate in man coverage - he won’t hurt a team, but he won’t be a shutdown SAF against above-average TEs
• Was, at times, too late to react
• Love his physicality, but he sacrifices security for the “big hit”

Summary

Williams massive frame, wingspan, and physical nature suggest he could thrive in the correct defensive sub-package system as a BIG DIME or BIG NICKLE Linebacker who is closer to the line of scrimmage. For a safety, his eyes were above-average in the box, and he displayed some ability to scrape and locate before delivering a huge hit. Still, he’s not the smoothest athlete in his transitions and his tackling was marginal. He’s a developmental defender who has a ton of upside, but some limiting factors that need to be corrected.

GRADE: 6.19

Nick Falato

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