STRENGTHS - Williams is an excellent athlete for the CB position that possesses the long speed to stay with NFL receivers in space and the agility, quickness and burst to close effective from off the ball. He also displays a natural ability to accelerate and close effectively when beaten off the break, allowing him to play physical and aggressive at the POA. On runs to his side he is aggressive with blockers, showcasing the ability to defeat them at the POA often with his ability to get underneath. He understands outside leverage concepts and does a solid job of forcing run plays back into the defense.
WEAKNESSES - Williams is an undersized player that lacks the bulk and natural strength to hold up at the POA against bigger receivers. He does not play up to his athletic level in zone coverage in large part because of his upright and choppy pedal, which consistently causes him to lose ground in transition. While displaying effective break and close ability from off the ball, his tendency to get lazy with his technique causes him to be late reacting to the ball, which resulted in too many easy catches in front of him in games I graded. He is not a sure tackler because of his lack of bulk and habit of leaving his feet and attacking the runner below the knees, and he tends to become a spectator on runs away from him and does not work to get involved.
SUMMARY - Steve Williams has the speed and athleticism to play at the next level, but his size limitations will be a huge concern for NFL scouts. While he flashes the ability to play physical in man coverage as well as against the run, he simply does not have the bulk or length to consistently compete with bigger bodies at the next level. Beyond his physical attributes, his poor technique in coverage will also limit his viability in the NFL if he is unable to correct it. Most noticeably in off coverage, he gets upright and lazy in his pedal, which puts him in constant recovery mode out of transition. While the college offenses he faced at Cal did not consistently take advantage of this, the amount of space he gives up off the break will be repeatedly exposed if he does not improve in this area. He also offers limited production against the run, as he is not competitive on runs away from him and is not a consistent tackler that shows a general unwillingness to hold his ground at the POA. He is worth a late round flier because of his excellent athleticism, but at his size if he does not improve significantly from a technical standpoint he is unlikely to see the field consistently at the NFL level.