New York Giants Training Camp Preview - DB Jarren Williams

Defensive back Jarren Williams drew some positive reviews last summer while with the Giants in training camp. What's his outlook for the year ahead?

Author:
Patricia Traina
Publish date:
Jul 21, 2021 4:29 PM EDT

New York Giants defensive back Jarren Williams began his NFL journey as an undrafted free agent out of SUNY-Albany, signing with the Arizona Cardinals after the 2020 draft. However, Williams didn't make it to training camp with the Cardinals, who waived him on July 26 when NFL teams had to trim from 90 to 80 men to meet COVID-19 roster protocols.

The Giants signed Williams to their training camp roster on August 2 following a successful tryout, appearing to have an outside chance at earning a roster spot where cornerback was becoming more and more of a glaring weekly need. However, Williams just missed making the final cut and instead was signed to the Giants practice squad.

Williams appeared in two games for the Giants last season (Weeks 14 and 15) after being a standard practice squad elevation. Still, he only participated on special teams, where he logged a total of 16 snaps, most of those coming on kickoff coverage and kickoff and punt returns in Week 14.

What He Brings

Williams, who clocked a 4.39 40-yard dash upon his arrival at Albany, played in 266 snaps spread over five games. The 5'10", 187-pounder recorded ten tackles for the Great Danes.

Meanwhile, in coverage, he allowed 11 of 18 pass targets to be completed for 115 yards, 31 after the catch. He also gave up four touchdowns and had three pass-breakups and no interceptions.

Williams showed solid tackling ability in his small sample size. However, his lack of college experience likely qualifies him as a developmental prospect whose ceiling has yet to be determined.

His Contract

Williams is on Year 1 of a two-year reserve/futures contract signed in the off-season worth $1,492,500. He'll count for $663,750 against this year's cap.

Roster Projection/Expectations

Despite showing flashes of ability, the bottom line with Williams is that he's still a raw player in need of additional development. If he has another strong training camp, he'll get that opportunity via the practice squad, where continued reps to help him smooth out some of the glitches in his game will be vital.

Find all our training camp player previews in one spot. New profiles are added daily until we get to the end of the roster.