Jets WR Mike Williams says he expects to be ready for Week 1 matchup vs. 49ers
Mike Williams was absent from OTAs and mandatory minicamp this spring.
But the 29-year-old has been working hard to recover from an ACL tear he suffered during the third game of last season, when he played for the Los Angeles Chargers.
With the New York Jets’ Week 1 Monday Night Football matchup against the 49ers on Sept. 9, Williams is optimistic he will be ready to contribute.
“For the season, for sure,” Williams said on Wednesday. “That’s my goal, to be able to you know go out there, play this season and give it my all. Give this team a chance to win the big thing.”
Williams signed a one-year contract with the Jets in March, potentially worth up to $15 million with incentives. After being selected seventh overall in the 2017 NFL Draft, Williams spent his first seven seasons with the Chargers.
Last season, Williams was on track for one of his best years, but his progress was halted after tearing his ACL in Week 3.
Since signing with the Jets, Williams has been at the facility working with trainers, hoping to be 100% before the season starts.
“Just to get back to my normal self, that’s the main thing, Williams said. Everything it takes to get back to, you know, Mike Williams football, winning football.
“So yeah, just grinding every day, doing whatever it takes.”
The Jets aren’t anticipating Williams being ready for training camp, which will begin in late July. The team does have recent experience with ACL injuries after Breece Hall tore his during the 2022 season.
Gang Green’s plan is for Williams to follow a similar rehab schedule to Hall’s after returning from his injury last year. Eventually, Hall was cleared during training camp and played all 17 games last year. He finished with 1,855 all-purpose yards last season.
“He’s doing a great job,” Jets coach Robert Saleh said about Williams. “I don’t want to put a timeline on him, but I think he’s pacing what Breece had a year ago.
“He looks good, he’s a big man, he’s come along pretty good.”
Once he is healthy and fully cleared, the Jets hope Williams will help take pressure off their No. 1 receiver, Garrett Wilson, while providing Aaron Rodgers, who is coming off a season-ending Achilles tear, with another reliable target.
A year ago, the Jets were hoping Allen Lazard would be that player after signing him to a four-year, $44 million contract. But he had a disappointing 2023 after finishing with 23 catches for 311 yards and one touchdown in 14 games. Lazard was also a healthy scratch for two games, including the season finale against the Patriots.
“I think he’ll do wonders for all of them, even for Breece,” Saleh said. “One, Garrett is not getting double-teamed. “Two, with the combination of our skill guys and Aaron, you’d like to think you’ll see more two high, which will open up some of the run game, so the faster he gets to full speed, it’s going to be more troublesome for defenses to pinpoint who they want to stop.”
Williams has caught 309 yards, 4,806 yards, and 31 touchdowns in seven seasons.
The Jets will break for the summer before returning for training camp next month. However, Williams plans to rehab at the facility during the extended break. He wants to return healthy as quickly as possible, but Williams’s challenge is not to rush the rehab process.
“That’s been tough, you know, just watching those guys every day and wanting to be out there,” Williams said. “You know, you don’t want to go too fast or anything.
“You just want to, you know, stick to the schedule, stick to the program and just trust the process. That’s my main thing to trust the process, seeing a lot of progress. Just keep your head down and keep working.”
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