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The Eagles recently signed former second-round pick Greedy Williams to be their backup outside cornerback. He was a really fun prospect coming out of LSU just 4 years ago but he hasn’t lived up to expectations, so hopefully, I can explain why below.
Statistics
The stats show that 2022 was obviously a bit of a disaster, but he didn’t really play at all. His 2021 numbers are pretty solid and it highlights that is not a complete bust and has shown that he can play in this league.
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Strengths
+ Upside is very high. He was a second-round pick for a reason, he looks like a lengthy athletic corner with good speed and explosiveness who can cover vertical routes on the outside.
Greedy Williams thread! Number 26 at the bottom of screen here. The obvious strength is the ability to turn and run. He has good speed and length. He looks like a prototype outside cornerback and is at his best against vertical routes. pic.twitter.com/6lC6dItdp7
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
+ Really good short-area speed and acceleration which shows in his click-and-close speed.
He has a good click and close speed too. He's much better in a straight line, either running backwards or breaking closing towards the football. At the top of the screen here in off coverage. pic.twitter.com/lzcCgM3mYk
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
You can see the click-and-close speed here again. He's a really smooth athlete and has all the tools to be a really good outside corner if he can sort his technique out. pic.twitter.com/oCgZLPQe6l
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
+ Very willing tackler. He’s a physically competitive player overall who is not afraid of contact.
His tackling technique is a bit all over the place which results in some misses, but he's very competitive and doesn't shy away from contact as a cornerback. He is definitely more physical than what the Eagles currently have on the outside. pic.twitter.com/9lXYQRNiPo
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
+ He has athleticism that can overcome technical flaws at times. This is a positive but I wonder if it has contributed to his poor play overall.
This is an interesting rep. You can see he opens his hips too early (especially when he has safety help inside) which gives the WR a great chance of winning outside. But his athleticism/speed allows him to still succeed. I wonder if this is a cause of his poor technique pic.twitter.com/cNaZRK5oDx
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
+ He has had a few incredible interceptions over the past couple of years that highlight the upside he has.
But, in the same game you saw his athleticism and upside on show. A classic 2-man deep concept (sort of post/cross). He passes the WR on his side off and spots the WR coming over from the other side of the field. Then he tracks the ball and picks it off. You can see the talent. pic.twitter.com/P2fQEXxYZM
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
Another play you can see the upside. It's clear why he was a high draft pick, he is such a smooth athlete and never looks like anyone will run by him. He rarely looks like he is sprinting but just glides when running into space. pic.twitter.com/NihzLwTbik
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
+ Pretty much played an identical amount of left/right CB snaps the past 2 years.
+ Long arms to break the football up in the air. If he sorts out his technique issue you can see the upside
Let's end with a good one. This is a rep where you see good technique. His hips are square and he can accelerate quickly on the in-breaking route. He uses his acceleration and length to knock the ball away from the receiver. This is a positive play from a talented but flawed CB. pic.twitter.com/IMtZICqmCc
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
+ He has the arm length and size to press receivers at the LOS effectively.
Weaknesses
- Has a worrying injury history. Suffered from nerve damage and missed all of 2020. Injuries have cost him throughout his career
- His tackling is a bit reckless at times which can result in some poor missed tackles.
- He has a really obvious flaw with his technique that costs him massively. He opens up his hips way too early and needs to stay square for longer. This means he gets beat inside way too often on film.
His technique is pretty poor at times. He opens his hips early way too often and needs to stay square for longer. Opening his hips early makes him really susceptible to in or out breaking routes like this. He gives up pass interference here because he knows he's beat badly. pic.twitter.com/Ts8XPycgaF
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
No surprises here, but he could not handle Justin Jefferson. His hips are basically facing the sideline here which makes it pretty impossible to cover any inside breaking route. You don't see a WR get this wide open in the NFL that often. pic.twitter.com/1Sv0QhjHxZ
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
- Needs to use his hands a lot more at the LOS. Has some really bad reps where he is overaggressive at the LOS without getting his hands on the opposing wide receiver so he can’t slow them down.
However, he had some pretty bad reps in this game too. He can be quite aggressive at the LOS and is certainly susceptible to double moves or by WRs who vary their tempo. He stops his feet too quickly and is slow to accelerate after stopping. pic.twitter.com/BlkOOTdIY1
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
He gets beat pretty badly by Thielan here who wins quickly at the LOS. Williams almost falls backwards as he lunges for Thielan with his left hand. He has really struggled with in-breaking routes. It's a really common issue on film. pic.twitter.com/cFhxk2LjRS
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
- Struggles to locate the ball at times down the field despite having good length.
For a lengthy outside cornerback, he does struggle to locate the ball at times and gets beat at the catch point a lot more than you would expect. No shame in losing to Tee Higgins here who is a fantastic WR, but this seems to happen a bit too often. pic.twitter.com/20b91STtBe
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 21, 2023
Overall
I really like this signing because it is a high upside signing with low risk. The talent on film is really obvious. You can see the speed, athleticism, and length immediately. Some of the interceptions he has had in the past are really impressive. He has the tools to be a really good starting outside cornerback which is why he was a 2nd round pick just 4 years ago.
However, the flaws in his game are incredibly obvious the more you watch him. I have no idea what the Browns' defensive backs coach has been doing with him but it hasn't worked. He seemed to play an equal amount of snaps at left and right cornerback too which I am sure can’t help when your technique is already bad. He opens up his hips too early all the time and it makes him so vulnerable to inside or outside breaking routes. He is far better when he can run vertically with a receiver on the outside. He is a long, lengthy corner but he doesn’t know how to use his hands at the LOS either.
Darius Slay and James Bradberry should be fantastic players for Greedy Williams to study. I commented frequently last year just how good Darius Slay was at staying square to the receiver and not opening his hips up too early.
Fantastic play by TJ Edwards (who was superb by the way) but just look at how long slay stays in his backpedal against Jefferson! He had 0 fear of getting beat over the top and was so patient which allowed him to close on the ball so quickly. It was so impressive. pic.twitter.com/3pp9RMUSJg
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) September 21, 2022
Slay and Bradberry stayed healthy for the majority of last season which probably won’t happen again. If Greedy Williams comes into training camp with the right mentality and learns from these two, he could end up being a really good signing from the Eagles. If he doesn’t improve quickly though, you might not want to see him on the field too much next season.
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