Mike Williams' 2022 season had all of the highs and lows that we've come to expect from having Mike Williams in fantasy football. In the first seven weeks, he had four weeks inside the top 15 wide receivers and three weeks outside of the top 50. Then came an ankle injury that cost him two games. Then he had a hopeful return, then a re-injury that added another two games missed on top of that. Then, in the final five weeks of the season, he had another two top 15 weeks combined with three weeks outside the top 30 wide receivers. To cap off this entire roller coaster run, he broke his back in a meaningless Week 18 game and missed all of the playoffs.
Overall, it was not a fun year for him, the Chargers, or really anybody that had him in fantasy football. But let's talk about that back fracture because I find it very interesting. When you look at Mike Williams' injury history, he now has four different incidents of back-related injuries. He broke his spine in the cervical region or the neck in college, he had a disc herniation, back spasms, and now a second fracture in the spine for Mike Williams.
The good news is that the most recent fracture should be 100% healed and did not require surgery or any medical intervention outside of rest. Now, if you asked the average fantasy player if Mike Williams was injury-prone, they would say yes. That's where the fascinating part comes in because he's actually played in 15 or more games in four of the six seasons that he's had in the NFL. So despite having a variety of ailments every year, he does seem to find a way to play through the pain most of the time.
The real question is, is that good for your fantasy teams? It kind of depends on what you value in your wide receivers. Personally, I value consistency above everything, and it seems like when you look at Mike Williams, he just does not give you consistent production week after week. If you're watching him from a fantasy perspective, you're thrilled when he has a top five or top 10 week, and then you're devastated because you have to keep him in because he can explode any week. But there are a lot of weeks out there where he just doesn't do anything from a fantasy perspective.
I'm not drafting him, not because of injury concerns, but just because I don't trust a guy that can't give me consistent production week to week. So because of that, he's on my "do not draft" list.
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