During the New England Patriots’ preseason finale vs. the New York Giants, rookie defensive back Joejuan Williams was on the field getting defensive reps. However, those reps were not at his normal position.
Williams was getting reps at safety, which is an interesting narrative with one week left until the regular season is underway.
The 6-foot-3, 200 pound defensive player may have been getting reps at safety for two different reasons.
1) New England was without Obi Melifonwu or A.J. Howard, both who missed the final preseason game because of lingering injuries. They were the only two players who would have likely garnered a large amount of snaps on the back end of the defense, so putting Williams in at safety prevented some of the regular 1st team players (Devin McCourty, Patrick Chung, Duron Harmon) from having to go into the game. Same goes for Terrance Brooks and Nate Ebner, both who have their value tagged on special teams.
2) The Patriots coaching staff would like to utilize Williams against larger, slot receivers and/or tight ends in the regular season. Because the secondary is so deep with talent, putting Williams at safety would put him on the field and allow his length and size to be utilized without having to remove other cornerbacks from the game.
Putting Williams at safety was likely an experiment of some sort against the Giants. But his usage could foreshadow how he will be used in the regular season for New England.
