Packers S Evan Williams: Bigger and Better for No. 18 Player in 2026

Packers On SI is counting down the Green Bay Packers’ top 25 players for the 2026 season. This series continues with our No. 18 player, third-year safety Evan Williams.

The Year 2 jump is the lifeblood for teams like the Green Bay Packers.

As a fourth-round pick in 2024, Evan Williams was named to the all-rookie team. In 2025, he definitely took the leap. He went from one interception to three. He doubled his tackle count from 49 to 100. He went from 474 snaps in 13 games to 903 snaps in 16 games.

In Year 3, he will play a different role in new coordinator Jonathan Gannon’s defense.

Why Evan Williams Is So Important

The 24-year-old is one of the NFL’s best young safeties. He was one of only five players in the NFL last season to hit 100 tackles and three interceptions.

With Gannon, Williams said he’d be playing more snaps in the box to help with run support. To get ready, he used the offseason to “lean out” while adding muscle.

“Yeah, absolutely,” he said when asked if he likes playing in the box. “I definitely pride myself on my physicality, as well as kind of just being able to do a little bit of everything. I feel like the first thing that people look at when they look at a safety is can he tackle? Can he tackle in the open field? Yeah, you get in a gap, you got to be ready for some of the things that are coming with the box.

“But, yeah, definitely something I hang my hat on is being a physical safety when I need to be and, when I get back, I can show my range a little bit.”

Because he’s an all-around player, Williams at this point next year probably will be at or near the top of the list for players needing a contract extension.

Evan Williams’ Strengths and Weaknesses

Green Bay Packers safety Evan Williams (33) makes interception during the fourth quarter against the New York Giants. | Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

Williams can do it all. In coverage, his instincts have been evident since he was drafted. He’s one of those players that the ball just seems to find him. Against the run, he plays with physicality. Ability, intelligence, leadership – he’s got it all.

“I think it’s grown a lot,” fellow safety Xavier McKinney said of his chemistry with Williams, “and I think you’re going to see it at its peak – like its peak performance, especially this year, because we’ve been able to play with each other for a couple years.

“So, he knows how I work, I know how he works, and we have kind of those tendencies with each other that we know. ‘OK, he wants to do this, I want to do this,’ and we kind of work off of that. So, it’s going to be fun, man. We’ve had a relationship ever since he got here, and it’s done nothing but just grow. So now, I think we’re at a point where he’s older – obviously, I’m an older guy now at this point – and you’re going to see it really take the next step.”

That chemistry will be used to Gannon’s advantage. Williams and McKinney have been “messing with” Jordan Love at practice so they can really get in the heads of quarterbacks once the season begins.

“Scheme is everything if you can get it down,” Williams said. “I feel like me and X are kind of [interchangeable] in terms of going down to the boundary and being a box safety, going back in the post and playing with range. J.G. has really just given us the freedom to play around with our alignments.

“They always stress, make it hard in practice, make it as difficult as you can, just so you know your limits. You know, if I’m at the line of scrimmage and I got to get to the post, hold it a little longer. They’re just telling us to stress ourselves so that when we get in the game, we’re playing free and we know our boundaries and our limits. J.G. has really given us the freedom to kind of be us and unlock all the things that make us individually great players, and he’s putting us in spots to succeed.”

To nitpick, Williams has missed too many tackles. He missed 13 last season; his missed-tackle rate of 12.5 percent ranked 38th out of 72 safeties who played at least 500 snaps. That’s neither good nor bad; there’s room for improvement. He was guilty of five penalties – fourth-most among safeties. Of the four that were accepted, three were for pass interference.

Green Bay Packers safety Evan Williams (33) celebrates after making the game-clinching interception against the Giants. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

What Happens If Evan Williams Gets Hurt

Williams missed only one game last season and played almost 81 percent of the defensive snaps. If he were to be sidelined, the coaches would have a decision to make.

While Javon Bullard is listed as a safety, he’s really been anchored in the nickel position. During the five practices that were open to reporters in the spring, he was full-time in the slot. Of course, he has safety in his background so could probably acclimate fairly quickly.

The alternative would be to plug Kitan Oladapo in the lineup. A fifth-round pick in 2024, he has played in 68 snaps in each of his first two seasons, with most of them coming in the season-ending games.

Why We Ranked Evan Williams Here

Our rankings are based on talent, importance of the position and salary. Williams’ cap charge for the upcoming season is $1,275,720. That ranks 95th at the position. If these rankings were based purely on talent and impact, he’d be a bit further up the list.

What’s clear is he’s been a steal. The 111th pick of the draft, Williams in the 2024 draft class of safeties ranks second in interceptions, fourth in tackles, fifth in starts and sixth in snaps.

Now that Williams is bigger, he expects to be even better.

“Feel good about where I’m at right now,” he said. “Feel like I’m moving pretty efficient.”

Every year, I rank every player on the Packers roster based on talent, importance, salary etc. I will again this year, too.

For now, let's cut right to the chase. Here is a quick-hitting look at the 2⃣5⃣ most important players for the 2026 season.⬇️https://t.co/ezDAkl7vmd
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) June 17, 2026

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