By Glenn Naughton
In trying to address one of the Jets’ biggest needs, the cornerback position, Jets general manager Mike Maccaganan and Head Coach Todd Bowles are rumored to have serious interest in adding recently released Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Cary Williams.
Despite having one of the worst defensive backfields in the NFL, the Eagles were willing to part ways with the inconsistent Williams and his $8 million cap charge for the upcoming season.
The 6′ 1”/185lb Washburn University product got more heat than he deserved as the Eagles secondary surrendered 30 touchdowns and ranked 31st in the NFL allowing 264.9 passing yards per game. As alarming as those number may be to some, Williams’ game-by-game breakdown shows that he wasn’t the main culprit in the Eagles defensive breakdowns.
According to PFF.com, Williams turned in four sub-par performances on the season, while grading out as average to above average in the Eagle’s other twelve games.
While Williams wasn’t Pro-Bowl material, he managed to hold opposing QB’s to an 89.5 QBR which would have ranked him second on the Jets last year. By comparison the only Jets cornerback to hold quarterbacks below a rating of 106.0 was undrafted rookie free agent Marcus Williams who posted an even better number than Williams at 88.1.
Williams most impressive stat was his 11.8 snaps per reception which ranks him 15th out of 73 eligible cornerbacks who played a minimum of 50% of their team’s snaps.
One factor worth considering that will be overlooked by most is that as a result of Chip Kelly’s up-tempo offense, Williams was on the field for 660 plays this year and 705 plays in 2013, more than any other cornerback in the NFL.
After visiting with both the Seahawks and Jets, Williams reportedly came away impressed with the Jets brass but already has visits scheduled with the Ravens and Titans still to come.