Alabama wide receiver Jameson Williams was predictably upbeat about his recovery from knee surgery Wednesday at the Crimson Tide’s pro day workout for NFL scouts.
Williams might have been the No. 1 receiver taken in the NFL draft if he had not suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in the college football national championship game on Jan. 10. Now he is viewed as a likely pick in the second half of the first round and a potential target for the Buffalo Bills at pick No. 25.
“Right now I’m 10 weeks out of surgery,” Williams said in an interview with the NFL Network in Tuscaloosa, Ala. “The time scale I was given was about five to seven months. I’m hearing I’m ahead of schedule. With me being 10 weeks out, I’m getting a lot of movement, a lot of good workouts in. I’m in the pool doing a slight jog, doing high knee lifts, just getting back all the motions. Everything is going good this far down the process, and it’s not that far. It’s just the beginning.”
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Obviously, Williams did not run the 40-yard dash at either the NFL scouting combine or Wednesday’s pro day. It is believed Williams would challenge to be the fastest receiver in the 2022 draft class.
Tennessee’s Velus Jones, probably a third-round prospect, posted the fastest time of any receiver at the scouting combine, 4.31 seconds.
Williams was timed by GPS tracking at 23 mph on a 94-yard touchdown against Miami in September, according to Alabama. The fastest GPS time in the NFL in the 2021 season was 22.13 mph by Colts running back Jonathan Taylor on a 67-yard TD run against New England.
As a high schooler in Missouri, Williams was a state champion in the 400 meters (48.6 seconds) and the 300-meter hurdles, setting a state record in the latter event (37.4).
The other top Alabama draft prospects who did not run at the combine also didn’t run at the pro day. Receiver John Metchie still is recovering from a torn ACL suffered in the Southeastern Conference title game in December. Metchie is viewed as a Day 2 pick in the draft. Tackle Evan Neal, who could be a top-five overall pick, did offensive line drills but opted not to run the 40.
