RADIO
Veteran wide receiver Mike Williams recently signed a one-year contract with the New York Jets. The former Clemson star was released by the Los Angeles Chargers last week because of salary cap reasons.
Williams is coming off a torn ACL he suffered in Week 3. He hopes to have a bounce-back season with Aaron Rodgers in New York and hit the open market again next offseason. The veteran wide receiver had a productive seven-year career with the Chargers, totaling 309 receptions on 512 targets for 4,806 receiving yards and 31 touchdowns in 88 games.
While Williams gets labeled as injury-prone, he missed only seven games since his rookie season before suffering a torn ACL last year. What’s the fantasy football impact of Williams signing with the Jets? Let’s dive into it for his former and current team.
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for the 2025 playoffs:- Quarterback fantasy football rankings
- Running back fantasy football rankings
- Wide receiver fantasy football rankings
- Tight end fantasy football rankings
- Kicker fantasy football rankings
- FLEX fantasy football rankings
- Defense (D/ST) fantasy football rankings
- Superflex fantasy football rankings
- IDP fantasy football rankings
- Dynasty fantasy football rankings
Fantasy Impact For The New York Jets
New York had one of the worst offenses in the NFL last season. However, that was expected when Rodgers suffered a season-ending torn Achilles five minutes into the year. Yet, Garrett Wilson is the team’s only meaningful weapon in the passing game. Allen Lazard was a massive free agency signing bust last offseason. Therefore, it’s no surprise that the Jets signed Williams.
However, the veteran wide receiver is coming off a torn ACL, making some wonder about his availability for Week 1. Williams says he should be ready for the season opener without any issues.
Mike Williams said he's 4.5 months out from his ACL surgery. He said everything is on schedule and that he expects to be ready for Week 1. #Jets
— Zack Rosenblatt (@ZackBlatt) March 20, 2024
The former Clemson star has been fantasy-relevant most of his career. Last year, he was the WR12 on a points-per-game basis, averaging 13.6 half-point PPR fantasy points per contest. Fantasy players should expect Williams to put up solid low-end WR3 numbers with the chance to be even better as he develops chemistry with his new quarterback.
Fantasy Impact For The Los Angeles Chargers
While the Chargers had to release Williams for salary cap reasons, the team reportedly was interested in re-signing the veteran wide receiver. Los Angeles has a massive need at the wide receiver position after trading Keenan Allen to the Chicago Bears for a fourth-round pick last week.
Former Chargers’ WR Mike Williams is scheduled to visit this week with the Jets, Panthers and Steelers, per source. Jets up first with Williams arriving Monday night.
Also, with the Chargers having traded WR Keenan Allen, they also are interested in bringing back Williams.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 17, 2024
Unfortunately, the top two wide receivers on the roster are Joshua Palmer and Quentin Johnston. Palmer has been a solid role player but never a No. 1 wide receiver. Meanwhile, Johnston is coming off a disappointing rookie season. Unless the Chargers get Marvin Harrison Jr. in the NFL Draft, Justin Herbert’s fantasy value has fallen into the high-end QB2 range.
Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App
Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy football app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, rankings, starts/sits & more. All free!
More Fantasy Football Analysis
