Las Vegas Raiders: Tyrell Williams’ injury woes could open the door for Bryan Edwards, Zay Jones
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Tyrell Williams suffered a torn labrum in his shoulder, but he’ll attempt to push through the injury.
The injury bug bit Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Tyrell Williams again. The injury to Williams is a big one, as he was expected to be a big part of a revamped wide receiver group in Las Vegas, and has had his fair share of injuries since joining the Silver and Black.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Williams suffered a torn labrum in his shoulder:
#Raiders WR Tyrell Williams has a torn labrum in his shoulder, sources say. He’s going to try to play through it after rehabbing for a few weeks. A tough task, but the big-play WR will attempt it.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 24, 2020
Williams will rehab his shoulder for a short period and try to play through the pain. However, he’s in a tough spot with the team’s season opener only 20 days away. In all likelihood, the Raiders could open the year with him on the physically unable to perform list or injured reserve with a chance to return later in the term.
Unlike last season, the Raiders have multiple options to fill Williams’ void if necessary. Rookie third-rounder Bryan Edwards has been a star at training camp. He also saw some first-team reps on the outside in non-padded practices, per ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez.
Quarterback Derek Carr and Edwards have already worked on fine-tuning their rapport on 50-50 balls.
“He’s an exciting guy, man,” Carr said about Edwards during a media presser (h/t NBC Sports Bay Area’s Josh Schrock. “He’s got some details to iron out. There was a ball that I went to give him a chance today, I gave Bryan a chance, something happened and will watch the film and talk about it. I got mad at him and we come back the next play, I give him a chance and he strong-arms the ball, throws the corner off him and it would have been a 40-, 50-yard play.”
Edwards has recovered from a broken foot, and he’s ready to contribute right away if needed. At 6’3″, 212 pounds, he’s the potential big-target wide receiver who could gain Carr’s trust early in the season. Their connection would also help in the red zone where the offense only converted on 52.8 percent of its opportunities for touchdowns (22nd in the league).
While Edwards has generated most of the buzz out of camp, Zay Jones has quietly had a good summer thus far. He joined Carr in unofficial practices and flashed with some impressive catches last week.
Levi Damien of Raiders Wire also made note of Jones and Edwards during a solid Day 2 of padded practices on August 18th:
As for receivers, Ruggs had a deep pass up the left sideline go right through his arms well placed by Carr. Zay Jones had very good day w/ some nice catches. Edwards keeps making tough catches look easy. Very polished. Agholor w/ fantastic grab deep up left sideline from Mariota.
— Levi Damien (@LeviDamien) August 18, 2020
Obviously, Las Vegas would want its wide receiver corps at full strength, though Williams’ injury isn’t doomsday either. The wideout has more uncertainty in his future though. Next offseason, the Raiders can release him and save $11.6 million, per Over the Cap.
Next. Las Vegas Raiders Bryan Edwards named a Rookie of the Year sleeper. dark
If Williams misses significant time during the season, he’s a likely cap casualty with Edwards in the fold. For now, the sixth-year veteran needs to show something on the field before he may have to look for work elsewhere in 2021.
As for the Raiders, they can confidently embrace the next-man-up mentality if Williams cannot play through his shoulder injury. In that case, we could see Jones play up to his second-round potential with experience in the offense or Edwards start opposite fellow rookie wideout Henry Ruggs III.