I think we all want to dispatch that Denver game into the darkest corners of our memory and while it was disappointing and raised plenty of questions, we have to remember that it’s just one game and there is still a lot of football to be played.

So instead of looking back, we’ve made the decision to look forward, which seems fitting considering the Jets are on their way to London town. Jets fans from all over the UK (and beyond) will descend on the capital this weekend in the hope of seeing an Aaron Rodgers masterclass coupled with a dominant defensive display. Standing in their way is an old friend in Sam Darnold, who’s playing the best football of his career while guiding Minnesota to a 4-0 start.

When asked to choose an X-Factor for the game on Sunday, the fans went with one of our newest additions in former LA Charger Mike Williams, who arrived in New York on a one-year deal with a little help from a Taylor Ham, Egg & Cheese sandwich (thanks NYJ_Matt). 

Unfortunately for Williams, his 2023 season was cut short thanks to a torn ACL suffered during a week three matchup for the Chargers against this week’s opponent, the Minnesota Vikings.

As they did with Breece Hall last year, Robert Saleh and the Jets have stuck to their word when it comes to easing a player back following a serious injury. 

In week one against the San Francisco 49ers Williams appeared in just 18% of the offensive snaps. In week two that increased to 65%, before dropping slightly to 45% in week three before another jump back up to 58% in week four. It’s likely that as the season progresses he’ll start hitting the 75%+ threshold that he became accustomed to in LA. 

“These last few weeks I have been building up and getting better every week. I have been trying to take advantage of every opportunity I get. When the ball comes my way, I make a play. I am excited for my role to keep growing and make plays.” – Williams told the official Jets website.

So far we’ve seen glimpses of what a healthy Mike Williams can bring to a starting offense, including this remarkable catch on Sunday against the Broncos

“When the ball is in the air, I kind of zone out,” Williams said. “I don’t see too much around me, I just see the football. I know where I am on the field, so I can just let my feet die so they can land in bounds. I knew it was a catch and started celebrating. Then I saw everyone trying to get into a hurry-up play, but I knew it was a catch, and I got out of bounds for the clock to stop.”

One thing the Jets have missed recently is that big, powerful, imposing wide receiver who is capable of climbing the ladder to make contested catches while absorbing contact. Bringing that kind of skill-set into the building offered a perfect complement to Garrett Wilson. 

Williams built a reputation in LA for making difficult catches look very easy and he’s brought that to the east coast this season. 

Through the first four weeks of the season he is averaging 15 yards per reception on 8 catches for 120 yards, with his best game coming on Sunday against the Broncos (4 catches for 67 yards). 

But if you look at the advanced numbers, it’s even more impressive. He’s caught 80% of all his targets, he is also catching 80% of all contested catches (4 from 5). When Aaron Rodgers looks his way his passer rating is 116.7 and Williams is yet to come close to dropping a ball. He has zero penalties and 6 of his 8 catches have resulted in first downs. 

In short, he’s a reliable chain mover who should become more and more involved the longer the season goes, and these numbers are not an aberration. 

Over the course of his entire career, he has just 22 drops on 517 targets. He catches 62.7% of all those targets and holds a contested catch rate of 54.3%. 

But while Williams is one of the better contested catchers in the NFL, he wants to be known as so much more and it’s easy to understand why. 95 of his career NFL catches have been on contested balls, meaning 219 were gained in other scenarios. Through his speed, his intelligence, his route-running and his savvy.

“When you get somewhere and do something so well, people only see you as that,” Williams said. “I feel like I can do a lot more than that one thing. You want to get your routes called so you can run them in a game, and the ball doesn’t always come your way, so you need to take advantage of when it does. I caught a slant a couple games ago and it was my first opportunity. I just need to keep attacking those moments.”

The Jets have a good one and considering Minnesota have the 32nd ranked defense in the league, this weekend may be the best time to unleash him.