After one season away with the New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers, Mike Williams officially reunited with Justin Herbert and the LA Chargers this offseason. Unfortunately, in familiar fashion, Williams' unofficial redebut wth the Chargers will be delayed.
The Chargers officially placed Williams on the PUP list, delaying his training camp debut. This is, sadly, a familiar feeling for Chargers fans who had to watch Williams get injured multiple times throughout his first tenure with the team.
Williams can come off the PUP list at any time. Him being on the list does not mean he is guaranteed to miss the start of the season and the Chargers may have just put him on the list to open up a roster spot. Still, given his past, Williams landing on the PUP list is a concern for many fans.
Mike Williams starts Chargers training camp on the PUP list
Williams starting training camp on the PUP list will allow other wideouts to get more valuable time. There is a roster crunch at the back of the wide receiver depth chart with several names competing for what might just be one spot. Williams being out gives the Chargers more clarity.
It does not appear that this injury is serious nor is it connected to the torn ACL he suffered last time he put on a Chargers jersey. Jim Harbaugh downplayed the injury during minicamp, so Chargers fans have every reason to believe Williams will be fine.
That is, until you remember that Harbaugh downplays every injury and keeps information close to the vest.
Nobody really knows what is going on with Williams other than the veteran wideout himself and those in the building. In the best-case scenario, the Chargers are playing it cautious with Williams and giving him a delayed start to what will be the longest training camp in the league.
In the worst-case scenario, this is a lingering injury that will follow Williams throughout all of training camp. Even if it doesn't impact his Week 1 availability, it could impact the level in which he can produce early on in the season if he gets off to a slow start.
Regardless, this is not how Chargers fans wanted Williams' second stint with the team to go. Hopefully, it's just a footnote in what turns out to be a fantastic redemption story for the former first-round pick.
Williams is one of five Chargers players who will start training camp on the PUP list. Elijah Molden, Jaylen Johnson, Del'Shawn Phillips and Savion Washington round out the list.