Buried in the book of NFL cliches, you'll find the time-tested adage of “you can’t make the club in the tub,” a nod to the idea that injuries can derail careers, never mind seasons.
When the Eagles foreshadowed they wouldn’t be moving forward with Britain Covey by failing to tender the star punt returner after an injury-plagued season, the move to quickly sign Avery Williams in free agency was assumed as the path forward on special teams, perhaps even boiling the return role down to one man because of Williams’ experience on both punts and kicks.
In 2024, Covey was the punt returner with star defensive back Cooper DeJean taking over when the former was unavailable. The duo of Kenny Gainwell and Isaiah Rodgers, who both left in free agency, handled most of the work on kick returns.
The idea of Williams being able to help while also saving a roster spot made a lot of sense from a roster-building philosophy.
Then came the talk from Nick Sirianni at the annual league meeting, where the coach seemed generally excited about the manufactured touch ability of Williams and creating the occasional touch for the fifth-year pro in space.
For those who don’t know, Williams entered the NFL as a fifth-round pick as a cornerback before being moved to the offensive side of the ball, first as a running back and then a receiver in Atlanta, before a 2023 ACL tear derailed that.
Since the signing, the Eagles have also bandied about where Williams fits, first listing him as a returner before ultimately housing him with the receivers on the roster.
He's really a core special-teamer with explosion as a returner and a solid coverage player as well.
The issue in Philadelphia is that Williams was unable to participate in spring work due to an injury, although he was seen working on a side field to get back. There was no obvious issue with the knee so perhaps the path was just precautionary.
However, it was notable that the Eagles claimed former Jacksonville running back and returner Keilan Robinson off waivers on June 6.
The context there is that the Super Bowl champs are No. 32 on the wire’s priority list, so the idea of being awarded anyone the league sees value in is rare, but Robinson, like Williams at WR, isn’t here to lighten the load at his labeled position.
Before Robinson arrived and without Williams available, the Eagles were using backup receiver Danny Gray, and undrafted running backs Montrell Johnson and ShunDerrick Powell as kick returners in practice.
It will never come to that because the Eagles will just default back to second-year player Will Shipley on kick returns and DeJean on punts if necessity demands it. However, the Eagles want returns off DeJean’s plate and would like the same for Shipley, who is expected to be the RB2 to Saquon Barkley next season.
The idea of signing Williams to condense the return role and perhaps be able to stash another young player at the bottom end of the roster was a good one.
Whether it works or not is contingent on Williams getting back on the practice field to prove he’s regained his pre-2023 ACL injury movements skills when he led the NFL in punt return average.
