The 33rd Team tasked NFL analyst Sam Monson with naming the most underappreciated NFC West players and for the Los Angeles Rams, he named Darious Williams
Williams rejoined the Rams after two seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Williams got his start with the Rams after they picked him up off waivers in 2018 when he was cut by Baltimore, who signed him as a UDFA that year. Williams was an integral member of the Super Bowl-winning 2021 team. He played nearly 80 percent of all snaps that season and led the team in tackles (8) against the Bengals in the big game.
Williams Named Los Angeles Rams Most Underappreciated Player
Here is what Monson had to say about Williams:
“This is a guy who’s underappreciated because he’s five-foot-nine. Teams do not like short cornerbacks. In fact, some of them don’t even draft guys that are that size and when they do, they put them inside in the slot. And that’s happened to Darious Williams in his NFL career. He’s been moved to the slot where he’s just not as good. It sounds crazy, but at five-foot-nine, he is a better outside cornerback than he is in the slot, and any time a team puts him outside, you just get consistently high level play.
So him going back with the Rams, a team that’s already been through that, that understands what he is and what he can be. Darious Williams is a high level corner that makes a ton of plays on the ball, doesn’t make it easy for receivers to catch the ball. Really underappreciated play there.”
Williams in and out of the Slot
A perfect example of what Monson was referencing was put on display within William’s two seasons with the Jaguars. In his first year, he split his time even between the slot and playing outside corner. In that season, he allowed an 80.7 NFL passer rating. The next season he played almost exclusively on the outside. His allowed NFL passer rating dropped to 69.6. He also intercepted four more passes in 2023 than 2022 and tied his career high, breaking up 15 passes. His missed tackles also dropped in half.
