RUMOR: Chargers rookie WR Mike Williams could miss 2017 season

Oh no. This is not how the Los Angeles Chargers wanted to head into the start of training camp.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, rookie wide receiver Mike Williams may require season-ending back surgery. For a team with injury issues galore the last two seasons, this is crushing news.

Williams, the No. 7 overall pick in the draft, suffered a scary neck injury in the first game of the 2015 season while at Clemson. He bounced back to have a terrific 2016 season, helping the Tigers claim the national championship in the process.

Williams sat out of rookie mini-camp with a back ailment which many believed he’d be able to recover from before the season started. “This may be a lot more serious than people thought,”, a source told Schefter.

That’s a tough blow for the Chargers, who didn’t really need to draft Williams in the first place. Wide receiver wasn’t really a position of weakness, but the team felt Williams was too good to pass up. At this point, they’d probably like to take that back.

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It’s hard to say what led to Williams’ back injury, but if this does lead to season-ending surgery and you combine that with the fractured neck he suffered in 2015, there would be a slew of questions surrounding his playing status going forward.

This would be troubling news for any team, but the Chargers have dealt with one injury after another in recent years, crippling their chances of success. Last season, wide receiver Keenan Allen was lost for the year in the season opener due to a torn ACL. The team may have, at least in part, chosen to draft Williams based off of Allen’s recent injury history. Now, the pressure will really be on Allen to get back on the field and perform this season.

What do Chargers fans think of this news? Sound off in the comment section below.

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