Chiefs DB coach Dave Merritt says what needed to be said about CB Josh Williams filling in for Jaylen Watson
Kansas City Chiefs CB Joshua Williams won't be the fatal flaw in the team's defense this year, at least not if you ask his position coach. An ankle fracture might cost Jaylen Watson the season, but Chiefs DB coach Dave Merritt doesn't feel his unit is any worse for wear without the former starter. The competition […]
Kansas City Chiefs CB Joshua Williams won't be the fatal flaw in the team's defense this year, at least not if you ask his position coach.
An ankle fracture might cost Jaylen Watson the season, but Chiefs DB coach Dave Merritt doesn't feel his unit is any worse for wear without the former starter. The competition in the cornerback room during the 2024 NFL offseason brought the best out of every player, including third-year cornerback Josh Williams.
Merrit's message to Williams when he didn't win the job opposite Trent McDuffie was a simple one: Stay patient, because your time is coming soon.
"The one thing that happened with Josh (Williams), when Jaylen Watson was playing a lot, I told Josh, 'Stay ready your time is going to come.' And sure enough, it definitely came, in a way that we (didn't expect) it to come," Merritt explained. "But Josh is one of those young men who works better when you give them more reps in practice, probably like 90% of our locker room. Once you give them more reps and they get more comfortable — they can go out and execute what we're asking them to do."
Williams didn't get the start in Week 8 against the Las Vegas Raiders, as that role went to fellow 2022 NFL draft pick Nazeeh Johnson. However, Johnson suffered a head injury and didn't return to the game, leaving Williams as the next man up in the cornerback room. Williams would play 39 total defensive snaps in Las Vegas, his most on defense in a single game since Week 18 of 2023.
Williams, of course, started four games as a rookie in 2022. He came off the bench just a few plays into the AFC Championship Game that year to play every single snap, record an interception, and play a big part in the team's postseason success through Super Bowl LVII. He'd go on to start in two games in 2023 and has appeared in 40 regular season games in total along with seven postseason games in his career.
The third-year pro out of Fayetteville State didn't play his best football in Week 8, coming in off the bench for Johnson. He got called for one penalty and allowed one reception on one target for 17 yards. Merritt expects Johnson to be up to the task as the season goes on. It all starts with getting more and more practice repetitions under his belt, but having Williams in there certainly won't change how the defense operates.
"I think that's what's going to happen with Josh (Williams) because he's played a lot of football," Merritt continued. "You guys remember when he went in the game for LJ Sneed, Cincinnati game after what four or five plays? And the kid continued to play well, through the rest of the Super Bowl runs. So two years of experience, postseason, the kid has been in there, so I'm not going to skip a beat. I trust him, and I believe that he's going to do well."
Should Johnson be unable to return from his concussion in Week 9 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Williams could get another chance to prove himself as capable cornerback depth for Kansas City.
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