ALAMEDA — The Raiders pursuit of help for quarterback Derek Carr didn’t stop with Trent Brown and Antonio Brown.
Tyrell Williams, one of the top wide receivers in free agency, signed a four-year contract Wednesday night with a maximum value of $47 million with $22 million guaranteed.
Rather than look elsewhere knowing that a good number of Derek Carr passes would be headed to Brown, Williams had the opposite reaction.
“Seeing A.B. come here, the things they’re ere doing on offense, it was exciting,” Williams said when he met the media Wednesday night. “Derek’s an awesome quarterback and being able to go against those guys for the last four years, it was kind of an easy transition to be able to make that decision.”
Williams, 27, is the fourth major piece added to the Raiders and the third on offense, with the club trading for wide receiver Antonio Brown, agreeing to terms with tackle Trent Brown, and also bringing aboard safety LaMarcus Joyner.
At 6-foot-4, 205 pounds, Williams has both jump-and-catch ability as well as the speed to get deep. He caught 41 passes for 653 yards and five touchdowns for the Los Angeles Chargers last season and in four seasons has 155 receptions for 2,530 yards, 17 touchdowns, averaging 16.3 yards per catch.
“I feel I’m a guy that can take the top off (the defense) any time,” Williams said. “that’s what I really want to do is stretch the field and allow guys to have more stuff underneath. It opens up the play-action a lot. But I can also do some stuff underneath with my quickness and running routes.
“I feel I’m getting to the point where I can be a complete receiver that will take more and more pressure off other guys. That’s my goal every offseason is to shore those things up I feel I need to get better at.”
Williams, from Salem, Ore., played at Western Oregon and was undrafted, spending much of his rookie year on the Chargers practice squad. Thrust into the lineup because of injuries in 2016, Williams had a breakout season, catching 69 passes for 1,059 yards and seven touchdowns. He joins Antonio and Trent Brown, who were sixth- and seventh-round picks, respectively, as unheralded collegians who have cashed in for a reported $88.25 million in guaranteed money.
Coach Jon Gruden’s stated goal Wednesday was to have the top receiving corps in the league, and the additions of Antonio Brown and Williams to go along with Jordy Nelson has upgraded the unit immensely.
“I don’t see why we couldn’t be,” Williams said. “I don’t see why we couldn’t be. Obviously it’s going to take some time to get used to each other and get the offense down, but I don’t see why we couldn’t be the best receiving group in the league.”
Williams father Ray, who is en route to the Bay Area, grew up in Oakland and attended Oakland Tech. He looks forward to calling the Coliseum home for a year after being a visitor with the Chargers.
“My favorite game was coming here in 2016 and the first time in the Coliseum and those fans just going crazy,” Williams said. “The music they were playing was awesome, it’s always been one of my favorite experiences.”
