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Fantasy managers hoping for a breakout performance from Williams, with Terry McLaurin (knee), Treylon Burks (foot), and Dyami Brown (calf) all sidelined, will be left wanting more. Instead, veteran journeyman Van Jefferson stepped up, catching five passes for 58 yards and a touchdown on a team-high seven targets, while Williams was largely an afterthought. Of the six targets Williams saw on Sunday, three came in the fourth quarter with the Commanders trailing 20-13. The rookie has caught 8-of-13 targets for 79 scoreless yards over the last two weeks and will be hard to trust as anything more than a WR3/WR4 in Week 10 against the Giants.

Williams mostly operated in a short area role but added a 30-yard grab up the seam in the fourth quarter to pad his counting stats for fantasy managers hoping on a second-half rookie breakout. While the fantasy returns have yet to pop, managers can continue to hold the electric rookie in the hopes his role grows in the coming weeks. That said, he is likely best left on fantasy benches until his route structure improves.

While the yardage total looks solid on paper, the fact that Williams had only four targets in a game in which veteran wide receiver Terry McLaurin departed in the first quarter and quarterback Jayden Daniels attempted 40 passes is concerning. Williams continues to flash big play upside through a multitude of injuries to teammates but has yet to fully take advantage of the increase in opportunity, something fantasy managers will hope corrects when the Commanders come out of their bye to face the Eagles in Week 8.

With Terry McLaurin out, Williams fully took over as the team’s No. 2 receiver. His eight targets were good for a 22 percent target share and he led the Commanders in routes. The bad news is that the offense struggled after Marcus Mariota went down with a knee injury. That happened in the first quarter, so Washington had a third-string quarterback under center for the majority of this game. If the role sticks, Williams could be a viable FLEX play once Jayden Daniels returns. The Commanders’ injury report will be one to watch heading into Week 5.

The Commanders were able to put up an impressive 34 points — six of those coming on a pick six, but still — against the Seahawks, but Williams had little to do with it with a long gain of nine. The 2026 third-round pick has a chance to be a solid PPR play at some point, but Williams is much more of a dynasty option than a redraft one at this stage. He’ll likely be the third wideout for Washington in Week 4 against the Colts.

Williams tied Dyami Brown for the second-most routes run (24) by any Commanders receiver, but he saw one fewer target than he did in his rookie debut. The rookie receiver came up short on an opportunity for a wide-open touchdown pass to Terry McLaurin on a trick play, which was the closest he came to generating a big play in this one. All three of Williams’ targets came on the second-to-last drive of the game for the Commanders. There’s far too much target competition here to consider Williams a viable fantasy asset in Week 3’s game against the Seahawks.

Williams’ 64 receiving yards were enough to lead all Commanders players in Sunday’s loss. The rookie third-rounder made his first catch late in the second quarter, picking up 16 yards to put the Commanders down on Philly’s one-yard line, which set up a rushing touchdown by Jacory Croskey-Merritt on the following play. He again came up big with a 33-yard reception in the fourth quarter to convert a third-and-14 that helped set up another Commanders touchdown, and on the team’s final drive of the game, Williams displayed good hands on a one-yard touchdown when he maintained control of a low, poorly thrown ball for the score. While Williams’ strong performance certainly warrants more opportunities, he shouldn’t be viewed as any more than the third receiver in Washington’s passing game. He’s an intriguing stash in deeper leagues, but there’s no reason to chase the points in next week’s game against the Cowboys.

Playing early is one thing. Pulling targets from Terry McLaurin, Stefon Diggs, and Chig Okonkwo is another. Williams has reportedly had a strong camp and will likely see most of his snaps come from the slot in his rookie season. The former Clemson Tiger caught 130 passes over his final two seasons, but it’s hard to imagine him offering much fantasy production, especially in the early part of the season.

Breer adds that third-year Commanders WR Luke McCaffrey has “taken another step.” Perhaps this receiving corps is slightly better than one may have thought a few months ago. Both players are behind WR Terry McLaurin and WR Stefon Diggs, who has “immediately stepped into a leadership role” on his new team, but receiving depth is a plus for QB Jayden Daniels.

Sure, it’s not like Jaylin Lane or Luke McCaffrey did much in this offense last year, and Deebo Samuel remains an unsigned free agent as we blurb this. Chig Okonkwo probably profiles as the second option after Terry McLaurin at this point, but Williams garnering a real role wouldn’t be surprising in light of how the depth chart currently looks.

Williams, 21, stands 6’/187. He was a four-year starter at Clemson, primarily lining up in the slot, as a go-to receiver running quick-hitting routes. He also contributes as a seam stretcher. Williams earned first- and third-team All-ACC honors, respectively, over the last two seasons. He missed two games in 2025 due to a hamstring injury and posted a 55/604/4 receiving line. Williams also threw one touchdown pass and scored once as a rusher in each of the past two seasons. He could warrant FLEX consideration in PPR formats if he earns his team’s starting slot receiver role, but gaining access to two-wide receiver sets is critical for reliable fantasy productivity.