Ty’Son Williams’ 2021 Fantasy Outlook as Ravens’ RB2, Gus Edwards’ Handcuff

Get to know one of the league's fastest fantasy risers, Ty'Son Williams.

9/10 update: Gus Edwards tears ACL – Updated 2021 Fantasy Outlooks on Ty’Son Williams, Le’Veon Bell, Latavius Murray & Devonta Freeman 

The Ravens’ ground attack took a massive hit when stud sophomore, JK Dobbins, suffered a torn ACL. Gus Edwards received the ultimate fantasy bump as the team’s clear RB1, but a relatively unknown 2020 UDFA, Ty’Son Williams, secured the RB2 spot when third-down back Justice Hill tore his Achilles on Monday.

“Since we signed him last year, he’s been doing a great job in practice,” Edwards said of Williams. “Everybody gets to see how hard he runs now. He makes a lot of good decisions, and he’s going to do a lot of good things for us this year.”

The former North Carolina Tarheel, South Carolina Gamecock, and BYU Cougar entered camp as an obscure second-year running back who could compete for a role on the practice squad. However, Williams was one of the team’s most significant camp bright spots and the two unfortunate injuries opened the door for the powerful runner.

With the path cleared, Williams is a must-draft 2021 fantasy football sleeper who could emerge as a league winner in a volume-heavy rush attack that has led the NFL in rush attempts per game since Greg Roman arrived in 2018.

“Ty’Son Williams is the definition of the perfect sleeper,” Evan Silva of Establish the Run said on the Fantasy Fullback Dive podcast. “He’s in the optimum situation for a 10th or 11th round pick.”

Williams got called up from the practice squad for one game last season, but the Ravens’ running back depth kept him stapled to the bench. His 2020 season ended when he signed a Reserve/Futures contract.

He entered the 2021 preseason as a camp body clearly behind the three aforementioned running backs, but he quickly turned heads and earned a roster spot due to his on-field performance and the rash of injuries to the running back room.

Through the three preseason games, he accumulated 130 yards on the ground on 24 carries (5.42 YPC). He even proved his worth as a pass-catcher, securing all seven of his targets for 38 yards.

The Ravens’ first preseason game was the first time the second-year back played in a game since the fourth game of his final collegiate season when he tore his ACL.

“Camp and practices are good, and like I said, you go out there and work hard, but I feel like games are probably the most important,” Williams said. “Those are real, live reps against another team. And then once the games started, I started playing in the games, and I started playing at a high level. I’ve been practicing that way, also, but I think games are really important to kind of instill that confidence in you.”

Although his college career was underwhelming, it’s clear he has an NFL skill-set. Williams doesn’t have an elite athletic profile, but he’s a strong runner with better quickness and vision than he demonstrated in college. He also proved to be a reliable pass-catcher during the preseason and could find a way into a third-down role due to his pass protection chops.

“Ty’Son showed that last year in training camp, and he’s just continued it this year in training camp,” John Harbaugh described. “So, he’s done really well. … Hopefully, he can continue. I think he will be able to. He’s looking good.”

The Ravens worked out veteran plodders, Le’Veon Bell and Devonta Freeman, but neither have much left in the tank.

The Wolf ranked Ty’Son Williams RB48 (+30 vs ECR) on his 2021 Fantasy Football Big Board.

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