Florida State CB P.J. Williams Makes Ideal Complement to Sam Shields

The physical Seminoles cornerback would make a practical addition to the Green Bay Packers defense.

Florida State cornerback P.J. Williams—Gary A. Vasquez, USA TODAY Sports.

Florida State cornerback P.J. Williams—Gary A. Vasquez, USA TODAY Sports.

Now that the Green Bay Packers have lost Tramon Williams and Davon House to free agency, cornerback stands out as one of the team's biggest needs heading into the NFL Draft.

There are a couple in-house candidates to find a starter opposite Sam Shields, but no sure things. If the Packers go into the first round looking for a new starter, Florida State's P.J. Williams would make a nice complement to the speedy and lithe Shields.

What makes Williams a potential first-round talent? Let the Seminoles defensive back tell you himself.

“Because of my physicality at the cornerback position and being athletic enough to run with wide receivers and with me having the ability to make a lot of tackles," said Williams at the NFL Combine.

Whereas Shields is a stereotypical cover corner whose best assets are his speed, ball skills and recovery ability and definitely not his physicality, Williams is better suited to the corporal aspects of the game, including press coverage and jamming opposing receivers.

Unlike the Packers that by and large have their cornerbacks play the left and right sides of the field, Florida State deployed its cornerbacks into "field" and "boundary" roles.

Fellow NFL Draft entry Ronald Darby played the "field" position at FSU, where he utilized his fleet feet to cover a larger amount of ground. Williams, meanwhile, played the "boundary" position, where he was more frequently confined to tight quarters and forced into making tackles.

"Boundary corner at our school does a lot of things: blitzes, a lot of run support and guards a lot of good receivers," said Williams.

One question is whether Williams has the speed to play on the perimeter of the field. At the NFL Combine, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.57 seconds, an adequate time but not on par with the fastest cornerbacks. He'll receive a second opportunity to turn in a better time on Tuesday at Florida State's pro day.

If there's one area where Williams stands out above his peers, however, it's in the drills that measure explosiveness—the jumps, both horizontal and vertical.

The former Seminole turned in a 11' 0" broad jump, which ranked second among all defensive backs at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. He also had a 40-inch vertical leap that ranked fourth.

Such afore-mentioned qualities could make Williams a perfect slot cornerback candidate, but at 6' 0" and with 31-inch arms, Williams also has desirable length.

"I think P.J. Williams could still be a first-round corner at the end of the day because of his length," said Williams. "Some teams are looking at him inside, but I think most of the teams will continue to look at him outside in the NFL's continuing quest to get longer."

Williams came away with just one interception in 13 games during the 2014 season, but he also racked up 74 tackles and 6.5 for a loss—both high numbers for a cornerback—to go along with 10 pass breakups.

From a turnover standpoint, Williams' 2013 campaign was better. He snagged three interceptions, including one in the BCS National Championship win over Auburn, an effort that earned him Defensive MVP honors.

And its not just Auburn that can attest to Williams' ability.

Louisville wide receiver DeVante Parker, himself a potential first-round draft pick, called Williams the best cornerback he's faced "because of the type of techniques he uses. He just changes what he does, so you have to readjust to what he's doing."

Any cornerback the Packers add, whether its the first round or not, will have to come in and compete with the likes of Casey Hayward and Demetri Goodson. 

But what could give Williams the upper hand is tough and rugged nature as a former high school safety.

"I moved from safety to cornerback out of high school," said Williams, "and when I came into high school, all our coaches pretty much emphasized it, and that was the systems I ended up being brought in, and I just worked on my technique throughout college and ended up being good at it. Me being physical, coming from safety, it was definitely an easy transition for me."

 

Brian Carriveau is the author of the book "It's Just a Game: Big League Drama in Small Town America," and editor at Cheesehead TV and its "Pro Football Draft Preview." To contact Brian, email [email protected].

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Comments (8)

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gr7070's picture

March 31, 2015 at 12:36 pm

Hayward >>> Shields
Hayward is a top 20 CB in the NFL (at minimum), and I think he's actually quite a bit better, but not looking to start a flame war.

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@ballark's picture

March 31, 2015 at 02:08 pm

I've been calling for the PJ pick. https://twitter.com/ballark/status/580500157957054466

Would love to see a 2015 draft like the 2009 draft, where Packers use their first and trade up to get a second impact guy. Get me PJ Williams and Stephone Anthony and/or Perryman and I will do back flips from NYC to Green Bay.

Go get 'em Ted.

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L's picture

March 31, 2015 at 03:59 pm

I think you meant to say that you'd do back flips from Chicago to Green Bay.

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jimtalkbox's picture

March 31, 2015 at 04:38 pm

I'd LOVE to get PJ Williams in round 1, but I think he goes somewhere in 10-20. Definitely my fave defensive back this year.

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sgt_cook's picture

April 01, 2015 at 01:05 pm

Whoever the Packers picks, we need to see some turnovers out of them. Ted Thompson normally looks for his DB's in the mid to late rounds, and I would expect him to stick with that strategy. I think the Packers will be looking for an inside linebacker in the first. If there is none available that they are high on, I think they look at a nose tackle. If their man is not there, then they'll take the best available player regardless of position. No matter what or who, this will be the fifth or sixth year of drafting for the defense. It's time to get the job done.

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Nashville Packer's picture

April 01, 2015 at 10:09 pm

Williams' involvement in the hit-and-run case profiled by the New York Times was troubling. It seems fans regularly underestimate how the Packers immensely value high character players. I've been floored as some fans have even called for drafting Marcus Peters, who was kicked off his college team. I can't remember the Packers investing heavily in a player known as a locker room cancer or an established off-the-field character risk.

Just the opposite. They actually lean toward players who are leaders and strong character guys who can fit into a small-town community.

Williams probably doesn't fit that, and Peters definitely does not.

On the football side, his 40 time at the combine, where times are not biased, was below average.

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Zola Davis's picture

April 02, 2015 at 01:45 pm

I don't care who they draft in the 1st round, as long as its a home run. That being said, its too easy to underestimate the value of each pick. Case in point, last year Corey Lindsley. I see that as a home run.

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HankScorpio's picture

April 03, 2015 at 11:05 am

PJ Williams just picked up a DUI. That's not a killer for him getting drafted but it will probably cost him some spots in the draft order.

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