Preston Is Pumped After Return from PUP: 'Ceiling Still High'

The long-awaited moment finally arrived Thursday when Preston Williams was removed from the Physically Unable to Perform list and practiced for the first time this summer.

It's been a long road back for Williams since he sustained that mysterious foot injury while scoring a touchdown at Arizona last November and he shared his thought on a variety of topics after the second joint practice with/against the Atlanta Falcons.

Among other things, Williams — who was leading the team in receptions as a rookie in 2019 when he was injured in the eighth game and was leading the team in touchdown catches in 2020 when he was injured again in the eighth game — talked about his confidence level, the wide receiver corps and how his injury occurred and why he felt bad for Christian Wilkins.

On how it felt to be back: “It’s been good. Not painful. I’ve been through it my first year. It was all about just staying focused and just keep going. But I’m happy to be back out here with the guys.”

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On how close he is to participating in team drills: “They’re trying to take it day by day.”

On whether he knew at the time of the injury he was looking at a long road back: “When I got the X-rays and the scan, I kind of knew it was going to take some time to get back from the injury. It’s a process, but I’m back.”

On how it felt mentally to be back: “It’s good. It feels good just putting the pads on. You put the pads on, nothing hurts.”

On the toughest part of being out of action for so long: “Just watching the game. You want to be out there with the guys. That’s probably the hardest thing, just seeing your brothers out there battling every day. You just want to be out there with them.”

On how the injury happened: “I landed on my foot and I heard it pop. That’s pretty much it.”

On the wide receiver room and what stands out: “Definitely versatility. All different types of guys. Fast guys, big guys. Guys who can do everything. We’ve got a good group. I’m happy to be out there with those guys.”

On his personal goals for 2021: “Like last year, stay healthy.”

On whether he feels he's been the victim of bad luck after having two promising seasons cut short by injures: “Nah, I don’t think it’s bad luck. You just go hard every play, you never know when your last play is. I’ve just got to go hard every play.”

On whether he's been pleased with how his NFL career has gone so far: “Nobody is pleased. The ceiling is still high. I’m still relatively young in this league. I’m still trying to prove myself.”

On whether anything has changed for him: “The confidence is still there, the competitive edge is still here.”

On having tough days wondering whether this day would ever come that he'd be able to return to practice: “Yeah, you have your days, but you just follow the process and it’ll be all right.”

On the growth he's seen from Tua: “Definitely the game has slowed down for him. You see he’s more confident and calm.”

On all the injuries at wide receiver and how critical the players come back so the whole group can practice together: “Real critical. They trust the trainers and the trainers are going to get them right. When they get back, we’ll show you how we can work.”

On how dangerous the WR group can be: “When everybody is out there healthy and playing, we’ll be real dangerous, I feel.”

On what he felt as a rookie when he was putting up big numbers before his injury: “Pretty good. I knew I could do it. Never doubted myself ever.”

On how his foot feels: “It feels good. The doctor cleared me and that’s all I was waiting on.”

On Christian Wilkins being blamed in some circles for causing his injury while jumping on his back to celebrate that touchdown at Arizona: "Nah, Christian celebrating, that’s what we do, we do every game. Anytime there’s a score, Christian is out there first. I knew it had nothing to do with it. I hate that people were saying that.”