Buccaneers NFL Draft Target: CB Nohl Williams, Cal

The Buccaneers need to continue seeking secondary reinforcements.

It could be argued the biggest downfall of the Buccaneers’ 2024 season came at the hands of secondary injuries – particularly at cornerback.

The Bucs lost primary outside backup Bryce Hall to a broken ankle in the first game of the season, and it cascaded from there with additional injuries to Zyon McCollum, which derailed a promising breakout campaign, and Jamel Dean, which everyone expects by now.

Forced to play practice squad members and special teamers like Tyrek Funderburk and Josh Hayes, the Bucs defense got consistently exploited through the air. While the first three depth chart players are all back, the Bucs need to both improve depth and seek for someone more promising given Dean’s and McCollum’s cloudy long-term futures.

Could California’s Nohl Williams be a possible answer? Let’s dig into it.

NOHL WILLIAMS’S COLLEGIATE CAREER

A California native, Williams played all three units for his high school team (receiver, defensive back, and returner) and earned 3-star rankings as a recruit. He joined UNLV as parts of its 2020 class and played three seasons for the program.

He broke out as a junior in 2022 with 3 interceptions, 8 passes defensed, and a forced fumble to earn All Mountain West honorable mention. As a 4-star transfer, he came back home to play for the University of California and continued to display his upward trajectory.

He broke out in a major way as a redshirt senior in 2024 with 7 interceptions, earning first-team All Big Ten honors. He finished his college career with 14 total picks and participated in the East-West Shrine Bowl.

PRO DAY AND SCOUTING COMBINE

Williams clocked in at an even 6-foot, 199 pounds with 30 ¾” arms at the NFL Scouting Combine – strong measurables to play on the perimeter at the professional level.

He routinely showcased that length and size with his tendency to get physical with receivers in press, and disrupt receivers at the catch point, and get his own hands on the ball.

Williams showed perfectly suitable speed with a 4.5 40-yard dash and 1.54 10-yard split, which is important when he gets bested at the line scrimmage in close-quarters alignments. The explosives numbers were borderline average (10-foot broad, 33 ½” vertical), but nothing eye-brow raising one way or the other.

Overall, Williams falls in line with thresholds the Bucs have found acceptable in the past, so he should certainly be on the team’s radar.

Williams participated in only positional drills at Cal’s Pro Day on March 20th.

WHAT WILLIAMS CAN DO FOR THE BUCS IN 2025

If the Bucs keep Jamel Dean on his current deal, Williams will open as a primary backup to him and Zyon McCollum along with Hall.

That said, Williams’s history of ball production and the aforementioned fragility of the current crop likely means he will see the field in some capacity. His familiarity with Cover 3 and Quarters will appeal to the Bucs, as those are two of the team’s most heavily deployed coverage shells.

Williams’s instincts and ball skills will play well to Tampa’s zone-favored approach and should allow him to make plays, which is what the Bucs have hammered the need for all off-season long.

On top of that, his intensely physical and challenging demeanor should bring some much-needed presence to a corner room that too often felt compelled to not challenge receivers.

However, Williams is still a work in progress as a tackler and gets too grabby (received several holds and DPIs), two aspects which will likely ding his transition to the NFL as a starter, making him better served as a depth piece while he continues to refine those weak points.

THREE-YEAR OUTLOOK

Williams has the upside of a good-to-great starter if the ball production translates and the weaknesses in tackling and penalties can be mitigated.

Dean has two more years left on his deal but can be cut for relatively little negative impact if he continues to miss more time due to injuries, therefore muddying his future. McCollum, meanwhile, is a free agent after this year and seemed well on his way to a contract extension before severely falling off in the back half of 2024. He’ll need to prove his ability to remain healthy and consistent if he wants that long-term deal.

Hence, Williams could step into a starting role as early as next season, but at the very least he should provide the high-level backup the team has sorely lacked the last couple seasons.

If he creates turnovers as often as he did in college, you could be looking at an upper echelon corner, but his average athleticism might hold him back from being cream of the crop.

STOCK REPORT

Williams is generally regarded as a late-Day 2, early Day 3 pick amongst the draft community.

Analysts generally view his size and ball skills as very intriguing positives but feel his occasional over-aggressiveness, non-elite athletic profile, and at-times questionable run support may hinder his ceiling.

Bleacher Report’s Matt Holder grades him as a 4th round player, comparing him to former New Orleans Saints starter Paulson Adebo, who recently signed a nice free agent deal with the New York Giants.

The 33rd team’s Kyle Crabbs looked at Williams favorably, grading him as a third-rounder and comparing to Dallas Cowboys All-Pro corner DaRon Bland. Here’s what he had to say:

“Williams should be considered a developmental talent, given the leap in competition and the margin for error required for playing in a high-stress island in coverage — but he’s worth the investment given his ball skills.”

NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein graded Williams as his CB12, labeling him as a good backup with ability to develop into a starter.

ON THE CLOCK…

What say you, Bucs Nation? Does Nohl Williams seem like someone who the Bucs should seek out to groom as an outside cornerback backup and eventual starter?

Vote in the poll and discuss in the comments below!