Why a Mike Williams trade is unlikely for the LA Chargers

Dec 17, 2020; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams (81) against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 17, 2020; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams (81) against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports – LA Chargers

The LA Chargers drafted Mike Williams out of Clemson with the seventh overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. While Williams has had some solid years in the powder blue, it is safe to say that he has not lived up to the expectations.

If you are going to spend a top-10 selection on a wide receiver then that wide receiver needs to be a franchise guy. Williams just is not that. It has nothing to do with Keenan Allen, either, Williams is simply an over-qualified WR2.

He is not quite dynamic enough to be a dominant WR1 but he is better than most WR2s in the league. Simply put: he is good, not great, and that is not what the LA Chargers were hoping for when they picked him seventh overall.

Now as we head into Williams’ fifth-year rookie option there is talk of cutting or trading him. The Chargers are in a bit of a cap pickle if they plan on re-signing Hunter Henry and Williams has $15 million that is free of dead cap that can simply be taken off the books by being traded or cut.

We previously explored the idea of Williams being in a trade for Baltimore Ravens tackle Orlando Brown and even brought you some free agents the Chargers could look to replace Williams with.

If the LA Chargers are in the market for a wide receiver it will be because they cut Williams, not because they traded him. That Brown trade is the only one that somewhat makes sense and even then, Williams might just be a topper on a deal that is mostly focused on draft capital.

Here is why the LA Chargers ultimately will not trade Mike Williams this offseason.