After a subpar preseason debut, New York Jets rookie defensive end Leonard Williams notched his first sack -- and his first safety -- Friday night in a win over the Atlanta Falcons.
Naturally, under the bandwagon-happy microscope of preseason couch analysts and players alike, he's already drawing comparisons to the all-time greats.
"He's big, he's big-bodied," veteran offensive lineman Willie Colon said. "He's so young, he doesn't realize the potential he actually has. He has that Richard Seymour-type body, that prototype [body], and sky's the limit for the kid."
To Colon's credit, Williams and Seymour have very similar builds -- they both stand above 6-foot-5 and weigh just over 300 pounds on the defensive line. But if having a big body was the only metric needed to predict a Hall of Fame career, we could enshrine Williams by Wednesday.
In reality, Williams did impress against the Falcons, but his momentum-changing safety was more a result of him taking advantage of a bad read by second-string, center-turned-left guard James Stone, and not necessarily terrorizing his way through a professional offensive line.
And Williams knows that.
"I know preseason doesn't really count, and also it was like a wide-open," Williams said. "I think it was a missed assignment on their part. But it still felt great."
The Jets start the season without their star lineman, Sheldon Richardson, who is suspended four games for violating the substance abuse policy, and are expecting Williams to slide into his role seamlessly.
If Friday night is any indication of Williams' true potential, then the Jets should be above water come October. Whether the rookie out of USC can make an impact during a full 16-game slate and deserve comparisons to Hall of Famers remains to be seen.
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