Is Stephen Williams the replacement for Mike Williams?

This guy might turn out to be nothing, but it makes me laugh out loud when people on this board brush off a signing without giving our FO the benefit of the doubt.

Seriously, how many times does this FO have to take a "nobody" player and turn them into a solid contributor before you realize that they can find some good players from the bargain bin? Even players that no other team wants?

I'll reserve judgment until after training camp.

I would also like to see us pick up Ramses Barden in free agency. He has been with the Giants out of Cal Poly. Similar measurements and strong hands.

Scottemojo":33o9v0gm said:

Seahawk Sailor":33o9v0gm said:

For comparison, which player would you rather us sign?

Player A: 71 rec, 798 yards, 4 TDs
Player B: 85 rec, 1,064 yards, 13 TDs

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Well, if Player B
I would rather have Fitz over Decker. Evan Moore was as big as Jimmy Graham, bit I would rather have the one who can clap without missing.

This Williams dude didn't get cut because Ryan Lindley sucks. Just like Evan Moore had one catch even though Wilson is awesome. This notion that great QBs can make d listers into good receivers has got to go.

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You're right of course, but I'd also mention that the snapshot comparison I made would also indicate that a crappy quarterback can make a receiver look a whole lot worse than they really are. We know Fitz is an absolute beast of a receiver, but put up very forgettable, pedestrian numbers when paired with a bunch of no-name quarterbacks. Paired with Peyton Manning, that match-up could eclipse Stafford-to-Megatron or Montana-to-Rice.

HawkFan72":8frum5ir said:

This guy might turn out to be nothing, but it makes me laugh out loud when people on this board brush off a signing without giving our FO the benefit of the doubt.

Seriously, how many times does this FO have to take a "nobody" player and turn them into a solid contributor before you realize that they can find some good players from the bargain bin? Even players that no other team wants?

I'll reserve judgment until after training camp.

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:13:

HawkFan72":1rjdzbc5 said:

This guy might turn out to be nothing, but it makes me laugh out loud when people on this board brush off a signing without giving our FO the benefit of the doubt.

Seriously, how many times does this FO have to take a "nobody" player and turn them into a solid contributor before you realize that they can find some good players from the bargain bin? Even players that no other team wants?

I'll reserve judgment until after training camp.

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+1
I really have my doubts that there are many talent evaluators around here that can boast a better record for finding players that can light it up than Schneider or Carroll.
Could he turn out to be a bust?, absolutely, but he could turn out to be damned good player as well.
John Schneider just likes to Dig A Little Deeper for that diamond.

I heard Mel Kiper thought this was one of the dumbest moves he's ever seen.

After reading that article, I'm actually pretty enthused, if not excited, about this pickup. If you are just replying, and didn't even read what was in the OP, you should read it:

In December, Williams injured his right Achilles’ tendon and was cut by the Cardinals, and John Schneider recently signed him to a two-year $1.2 million futures contract worth $555,000 in 2013 and $645,000 in 2014. “We got him,” Schneider was recently quoted as saying.

“It’s insane. It’s an absolute crime,” Cardinal’s Bertrand Berry said back in 2010 when asked how NFL teams failed to draft Williams. In the same 2010 interview, Larry Fitzgerald said that Williams may eventually replace him as the #1 receiver on the Cardinal offense. ”That’s a good thing to hear coming from a guy like that (Fitzgerald),” Williams said. “I’m learning from him every day, how to pick his brain and run routes like him and the different techniques he uses to get open.” Derek Anderson compared Williams to Josh Cribbs of the Cleveland Browns. ”Josh was one of those guys,” Anderson said. “He’s not a great receiver, but he’s a great athlete and probably one of the best football players I’ve ever been around.”

I know this doesn't mean much, and he was an undrafted receiver to begin with.... but this is promising. And we all know the terrible situation in Arizona- combined with John and Pete's knack for finding talent, we could have a case for something here. I'm not counting on it, but I am optimistic.

Tech Worlds":2xe7bnu7 said:

What happened too Rocardo Locette?

Dont get too excited about players that have on the surface seam like good players but just dont have the pedigree or track record to make it in the NFL.

My neighbor is 6'5", big dude, looks like he can run but I am not under any misconceptions that he could get the job done at the NFL level.

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But, there's a world of difference between your neighbor (who I take is NOT a football player) and Stephen Williams - who IS an NFL football player with a track record. Isn't the average career just something like 4 years? He's halfway there man. He's been doing it (without a good QB.) I don't see anyone saying Williams is a lock or being overly excited. I think this signing is noteworthy without overstating it. Of course he has to prove himself valuable enough to make the roster. That will most definitely be determined. I'll say this about Williams, though. If JS is truely excited about him... I trust he's looking at the player's college body of work as well as the same consideration everyone squawks about with Larry Fitzgerald - that he would be much more productive with a QB that could get him the ball. He has been stuck on the same WR corps unno: Stephen Williams is worth a look to see if there is more there with a capable QB to get him the ball. There was a buzz about this guy coming out of college into the draft. Tough to judge a guy on just 2 years in Arizona when there was plenty of things wrong about that offense. Williams has impressed at both the college and (though more limited) NFL level already.

Thanks to the original poster. I enjoyed reading it and can appreciate your cautious excitement when a player like this with potential gets signed for a look. We'll see if SW works out or if JS/PC find even better talent.

Aren't you concerned about all the bandwagon fans after Williams dominates SportsCenter every week?

Scottemojo":3typhw3n said:

I think you are making a bigger deal out a guy the Cardinals cut December 14 than is really warranted.

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If you haven't, you should read the article he wrote. I thought it was pretty informative.

I don't think anyone is making presumptions about Stephen Williams. He does have two things going in his favor though:

#1: The Arizona Cardinals are a notoriously incompetent franchise.

#2: Pete Carroll is not new to the idea of turning other team's bums into good football players.

Stephen Williams probably won't pan out, but this signing shows one of the subtle things John Schneider does that makes him a brilliant GM. He signed Williams to a 2 year deal that pays Williams very close to the league minimum over 2013 and 2014. That way, if Williams actually has a good season in 2013, he's still coming back at a bargain rate in 2014. Pretty clever. Sign those desperate players to cheap multi-year deals while they are in no position to say no. He did the same trick with Brandon Browner.

[youtube]ehMxI_i61xE[/youtube]

I'm going to hope for the best. I like the potential but he might just be camp fodder, yes JS has had some huge signings but we've also had some total duds. Such is football, I just think it's premature to call this guy a replacement for Mike Williams who once caught 60+ passes.

I'm cautiously optimistic. Guys with big bodies that don't get great separation excel at 2 things:

quick slants where they can shield the defender, and jump balls.

Wilson doens't throw the quick slant all that well (yet).

Wilson excelled at throwing successful jump balls to 5'10" Golden Tate. If we can find a spot for him in this offense, I'm betting he can make an impact as a 1st down and red zone guy as a 4th or possible 3rd WR. Remember, the one constant with Baldwin is that he will get hurt. We need a solid #4 that can fill in for him.

How is Baldwin being hurt a gimme? He got banged up good the first game and played hurt all year, but I wouldn't call him injury prone.

Hawks46":3ay06ltj said:

I'm cautiously optimistic. Guys with big bodies that don't get great separation excel at 2 things:

quick slants where they can shield the defender, and jump balls.

Wilson doens't throw the quick slant all that well (yet).

Wilson excelled at throwing successful jump balls to 5'10" Golden Tate. If we can find a spot for him in this offense, I'm betting he can make an impact as a 1st down and red zone guy as a 4th or possible 3rd WR. Remember, the one constant with Baldwin is that he will get hurt. We need a solid #4 that can fill in for him.

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What makes you say he doesn't get great separation? I haven't seen any real good vids on him, but dude apparently ran a 4.5 40 with a 2.52 20 yard split. That's pretty quick. Especially for a dude who's 6'5". Actually he's pretty comparable to Sidney Rice on the Al Davis "I only look at measurables" system. I'd be happy to have two Sidney Rices. Hopefully he can catch...

Great video there Kearly. Thanks for that.

Watching the highlights it's clear that this guy has talent -- very nice hands, gets good separation ... and that leaping ability (low whistle). Very nice. There were a couple of other things that I noticed with that video as well -- things that you could say could be potential strikes against him. The first thing that I noticed was that there looked like many instances in which he didn't get both feet down inbounds on routes to the sideline. Now those 1 foot in bounds catches work in college ... but not so much in the NFL. Also, he looks very lean and lanky in that film. That led me to wondering how he does against press coverage when CB's are really in his grill. I'm guessing not that well because there were no highlights of him fighting through press coverage off the line. So that might be a reason why he struggled against some when it came to going against some of those CB's from the bigger college programs -- just bigger, stronger, faster guys. One thing's for sure, we're going to find out just how well he does against press coverage in training camp, as he's going to be going against some of the best in the league in Brandon Browner, Richard Sherman, and company. There's a lot to like from what I saw there, but I'll reserve my judgment until training camp and the preseason.

Definitely like how he grabs the ball at its highest point in a lot of those grabs, seems like he could be a nice weapon in the end zone (a la Wilsons TD pass to fitz)

Lot's of preseason roster spots to fill. Let's see what happens.