Speed Alone Might Earn Patriots WR Kyle Williams a Roster Spot

Kyle Williams spent parts of training camp repping as the New England Patriots' seventh wide receiver. The speedster, taken in the third round last year, didn't have a strong start to his summer.

Now for the last two weeks, the second-year wideout has found the end zone in the preseason — and is using his speed to do it. Last night, he caught a 69-yard touchdown down the right sideline to help give the Patriots a 10-7 lead, which would later turn into a 24-21 comeback victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.

There's competition for those final wide receiver spots on the roster, and Williams has started to look uncuttable. That competitive nature has helped foster his abilities we've seen the last two weeks, which included a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts.

"I have always been confident in my game — just being consistent, honestly," Williams told reporters postgame. "That's all it is — being consistent. We have a great group of guys. It's always competition. It's competitive, but it's friendly competition. Nobody gets mad at anybody. It's iron sharpening iron at the end of the day.

"So, I'm really glad to have these great group of guys — great vets from top down. So, it's just a fun room to be in."

Williams Scored Patriots' First TD

Aug 22, 2026; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots wide receiver Kyle Williams (18) runs for a touchdown after making a catch against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first half at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With 4:03 remaining in the first half in Saturday's win, the Patriots were trailing Tanner McKee and the Eagles 7-3. It had been an alright start to the game for the Patriots, who struggled to just move the ball deep into Philadelphia's territory.

They didn't need to worry about trying to slowly moving closer. After a JaMycal Hasty run and Efton Chism III grab, the Patriots went for it all.

"Yeah, we got the look that we wanted," Williams said. "Press coverage — something that I really enjoy to see. Tommy (DeVito) took a chance on me. What a great throw, honestly. We have been on point this whole camp, so it was good just to see it connect and strike the band."

"The coverage that they played put an isolation on Kyle, so hold the safety, let him roll, had great protection," the quarterback DeVito said. "Threw it out there, hit him, and let him do the rest."

It wasn't even close. DeVito threw a bomb to Williams, who easily got past Eagles cornerback Ambry Thomas. Williams then sprinted home into the south end zone for his second score of the summer.

"It's something that I'm good at, I would say. I wouldn't say it's my biggest asset — but, it's something I'm good at," Williams said about getting behind the defense. "Honestly, all 11 players have got to be on the same page," Williams said. "I just did my 1/11th, and everybody else did theirs, and that is how those big plays come to fruition."

Why Williams' Growth Is Importance:

The Patriots didn't get the largest output from the Washington State rookie last year. He caught just 10 passes (three of them were touchdowns) and wasn't much of a factor when straight-line speed wasn't involved.

But he's looked better in these games, and the Patriots are going to need his blazing speed at times this year.

"Yeah, he's a baller. He's got a great release package, and he's going to take the top off and go score," Chism said. "But he's been doing great things throughout the week, working on — not just the go balls — and getting better as a player. So, it's been awesome to grow with him and to lean on each other."

Those release packages are maybe some of the best on the roster, but there are areas for major growth. Williams isn't the biggest receiver (he's just 5-foot-11) and sometimes struggles at winning contested throws. He's great at winning at the line of scrimmage, but needs to get better at winning at the top of the route.

Ultimately, the Patriots have a decision to make for roster cuts on Aug. 30. But the way Williams is playing with the pads on these last two weeks, that shouldn't be too stressful a day for him.

"I just want to give Kyle as many opportunities to continue to improve and do the things that we have asked him to improve on, and he knows he needs to improve on," head coach Mike Vrabel said. "And I love his ability outside the numbers to be able to stretch the field. And we wanted to give him some more opportunities to be able to do that as well as work on some of the stuff that Todd (Downing) and Josh (McDaniels) have him trying to improve on."

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