Jonathan Williams didn’t work out for Buffalo. The Broncos and Saints also had him, with little production. But he’s looking like a viable running back nowadays, going over 100 yards in back to back games. It’s a reminder that sometimes players need some time, and they need to find the right fit.
This happens a little more often than you might think (a player not hitting until he gets to his second or third team). Usually with later-round draft picks, where teams don’t have as much patience.
In the case of Williams, it actually also happened with a teammate. Williams and Alex Collins formed a nice one-two punch at Arkansas. They both went over 1,000 yards in 2014. But with both running backs, they didn’t have success at the NFL level until getting cut by the team that drafted them. In the case of Collins, he was a nominal player for the Seahawks in 2016. It was with the Ravens in 2017 that Collins started cranking out 100-yard games.
I spent some time looking at this. Since 2000, there have been 17 running backs that were drafted by one team but had their first 100-yard rushing game for a different franchise. Williams is just the latest.
| SECOND CHANCE RUNNING BACKS | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Year | Draft | Rd | 100+ | Year |
| Reuben Droughns | 2000 | Det. | 3 | Den. | 2004 |
| Vernand Morency | 2005 | Hou. | 3 | G.B. | 2006 |
| Sammy Morris | 2000 | Buff. | 5 | Mia. | 2006 |
| Artose Pinner | 2003 | Det. | 4 | Min. | 2006 |
| Noah Herron | 2005 | Pitt. | 7 | G.B. | 2006 |
| Derrick Ward | 2004 | NYJ | 7 | NYG | 2007 |
| Ryan Torain | 2008 | Den. | 5 | Was. | 2010 |
| Chris Ogbonnaya | 2009 | St.L. | 7 | Cle. | 2011 |
| Jordan Todman | 2011 | S.D. | 6 | Jac. | 2013 |
| Kerwynn Williams | 2013 | Ind. | 7 | Ariz. | 2014 |
| Spencer Ware | 2013 | Sea. | 6 | K.C. | 2015 |
| Jacquizz Rodgers | 2011 | Atl. | 5 | T.B. | 2016 |
| Dion Lewis | 2011 | Phil. | 5 | N.E. | 2017 |
| Alex Collins | 2016 | Sea. | 5 | Balt. | 2017 |
| Mike Davis | 2015 | S.F. | 4 | Sea. | 2018 |
| Dwayne Washington | 2016 | Det. | 7 | N.O. | 2018 |
| Jonathan Williams | 2016 | Buff. | 5 | Ind. | 2019 |
The vast majority of these guys were players selected in the later rounds. There have been 80 running backs drafted in the first two rounds (since 2000) who’ve run for over 100 yards in a game. All did it for their original teams. It’s in the last three rounds where you start to see a higher hit rate with retreads.
In the fifth round (where Williams was chosen) 6 of the 21 running backs who’ve had 100-yard games first hit that mark with a different team. In the seventh round, it’s over a third – 5 of 14.
So if you’re in a dynasty league and there’s a late-round running back who catches your eye, don’t give up on him just because a team places him on waivers. There’s some chance he might land and blossom somewhere else.
| FIRST 100 WITH DIFFERENT TEAM | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Selected | No | Total | Pct |
| First Round | 0 | 46 | 0% |
| Second Round | 0 | 34 | 0% |
| Third Round | 2 | 31 | 6% |
| Fourth Round | 2 | 34 | 6% |
| Fifth Round | 6 | 21 | 29% |
| Sixth Round | 2 | 18 | 11% |
| Seventh Round | 5 | 14 | 36% |
—Ian Allan