Marlon Williams 2021 NFL Draft Profile
Position: Wide Receiver
Height: 6’0
Weight: 209 lbs
School: University of Central Florida
Marlon Williams 2021 NFL Draft Profile
Overview
Born in Mobile, Alabama, Williams attended McGill-Toolen high school where the Yellow Jackets won the Class 7A State Championship in his junior year. In his senior year, Williams caught 47 passes for 990 yards and rushed for seven touchdowns. 247Sports ranked him as the number 88 receiver in the country. Williams was also ranked the 20th best player from Alabama and considered a three-star prospect. He originally committed to the University of Southern California but changed to the University of Central Florida.
In his freshman year, Williams caught 17 receptions of 270 yards for two touchdowns. He also completed two carries of 54 yards. The following season, Williams had 18 receptions for 234 yards with one touchdown. Additionally, he had five carriers of 25 yards and six kick returns of 93 yards. In his junior year, Williams completed 51 receptions of 717 yards with six touchdowns. He also completed four punt returns for 22 yards and three kickoff returns for 42 yards. Williams ranked second on the team in receptions and third in receiving yards and touchdowns. His 75-yard touchdown was the longest by any UCF Knight that season.
The following season, Williams had 71 receptions of 1,039 yards with 10 touchdowns. Additionally, he had three punt returns of six yards. Williams led the Knights in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns. He tied for eighth in a UFC season for having five games of 100 or more receiving yards. Combined with Jaylon Robinson for 2,018 receiving yards on the 2020 season, which makes them the fourth offensive duo in the program’s history.
Williams received Pro Football Focus’s third-team All-American honors, first-team all-conference accolades, and was a semifinalist for the Biletnikoff Award. Additionally, he was first in the AAC with 8.9 receptions per game, which also ranked him third in the U.S. Williams led the league with 129.9 yards per game, which ranked him fifth in the U.S. He also was second in the conference with 10 receiving touchdowns, which ranked him seventh in the U.S. Williams ranked second in the league in receiving yards, as well as ninth in the nation. He caught 13 passes in a single game, which tied for fourth in UFC history. In another game, Williams had nine receptions of 174 yards with three touchdowns in a single game, which is tied for fourth in UFC history.
Williams finished his UFC career tied for ninth in receptions with 157, ranked 10th all-time in school history with 2,260 receiving yards, and ninth-best in receiving touchdowns with 19. During his pro day, Williams completed 14 reps on the 225 lb bench press, as well as a vertical jump of 33.5 and a broad jump of 09’11. He ran the 40-yard in 4.66, the 20-yard in 2.62, and the 10-yard in 1.65. Finally, Williams completed the 20-Yard Shuttle in 4.57.
Strengths
- Great hands for making big plays;
- Very physical with good balance;
- Good blocker;
- Has very good spatial awareness;
- Competes for tough catches.
Weaknesses
- Lacks a second gear in order to separate from defenders;
- His route tree is very limited and needs development;
- Overall speed;
- Can be a bit stiff in his running game;
- Had a career-high four dropped passes in 2020 when targeted more.
Teams With Need At Position: Chicago Bears, Philadelphia Eagles, Cincinnati Bengals, Miami Dolphins
Projection: Fourth Round
Bottom Line on Marlon Williams
Williams’ physical game is incredibly enticing and will make him attractive to quite a few teams. The fact that he also has great hands and can be relied upon for big game plays shows his well-roundedness. There are very few negatives in Williams’ game outside of speed and explosiveness.
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