He played just nine snaps in his debut for the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 10 on the road against the Washington Commanders, but WR Mike Williams made the most of those nine snaps — particularly on his final one.
Williams, who was acquired via trade from the New York Jets for a 2025 fifth-round pick ahead of the trade deadline on Nov. 5, hauled in the game-winning 32-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Russell Wilson on a 3rd and 9 with just over two minutes left in the game.
That was his only target in the game, and he made the most of it.
Now, with more time in the building under his belt and more comfort in the system and with Wilson, things are really looking up for Williams.
So much so, in fact, that former NFL GM and current ESPN analyst Mike Tannenbaum believes Williams is going to be the “game breaker” for the Steelers Sunday in their heated AFC North match against the Baltimore Ravens at Acrisure Stadium.
Appearing on ESPN’s Get Up Friday morning, Tannenbaum made the case for Williams to have a big hand in the game’s outcome.
“Mike Williams, who knows where the red line is, he got traded and one week, one touchdown. And again, the Ravens’ secondary, for whatever reason this season, is extremely vulnerable,” Tannenbaum said of Williams as the game-breaker for the week, according to video via ESPN. “I think this is a great matchup for him and George Pickens.
“I think Mike Williams has two TDs in two weeks as a Steeler.”
Wouldn’t that be something? After being used very little in New York (just 21 targets), Williams made an immediate impact in his first game as a Steeler. It would be rather impressive if he had a touchdown in back-to-back weeks in his first two games as a Steeler, that’s for sure.
As Tannenbaum pointed out, the Ravens’ secondary has been a mess this season. They’ve struggled to defend pretty much everyone they’ve played this season, particularly in the passing game. Entering their Week 11 matchup on the road against the Steelers, the Ravens have the NFL’s worst passing defense, allowing 294.9 yards per game through the air.
Granted, they have the NFL’s best run defense, and teams are often trailing them so they have to put the ball in the air. But the numbers are very concerning, especially in recent weeks where they’ve struggled against the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals.
Now, they’ll have to deal with Russell Wilson and his moon balls to Williams, George Pickens and Calvin Austin III. Add that the Ravens are banged up in the secondary with Kyle Hamilton dealing with an ankle injury and counting on veteran trade acquisition Tre’Davious White to potentially fix things in the secondary, and it could be a long day for Baltimore’s pass defense.
Williams was brought in to make big plays down the field. He did that in his first game. His playing time and role should be larger this week. It’s not unreasonable to believe he could find the end zone again.
