Nate Williams at the NFL Combine

Nate Williams is one of three Huskies that will be representing UW at the NFL Combine this weekend.

Williams is a strong safety out of Kennedy High School, in Burien WA. He is known for his ball-hawking skills, as he tends to always be around the ball and making tackles. He was the second leading tackler on the team behind Mason Foster. He is projected to go in the later rounds or could possibly go undrafted.

As a Dawg:
Williams was one of the leaders of the defense, he excelled in tackling and was able to come in on blitz packages and get to the quarterback. He was a captain of the team, and was voted to the second team all Pac-10 in his senior season.

Projected in the NFL:
He will be buried on a depth chart or a practice squad for a few years as he develops. If he does do anything right away it will be in the special teams department. Don’t look for him for at least a few years if everything goes great in his development.

Strengths:
He excels at tackling, and closing speed. He is able to play in the box or in the blitz. His tackles are not usually broken, and he is able to play into contact. He also has strong vision of a play breaking down when he plays deep enough.

Weaknesses:
He has a lot that needs to be worked on in his game to be able to convert to the NFL level. He needs to work on his coverage both in the zone and in man. He, like many developing safeties, tends to take bad angles to tackle and will lose a faster or more agile runner. He can’t play deep enough as a safety because his closing speed isn’t very quick. He tends to go for the tackle or the interception even when he has a legitimate shot at creating the turnover.