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- Mar 19, 2019
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“I feel confident where I’m at,” said Dexter Williams following practice Wednesday. “Jamaal and I are two different guys. He’s his own person. I’m my own person (but) I feel like I could definitely step up and help out and do what I need to do. I feel like I can play a great role in this offense. I’m just here to do my job.”
It’s not the first time Williams has had to be patient. Despite playing right away as a true freshman at Notre Dame, the 5-foot-11, 212-pound running back didn’t actually become a full-time starter until his senior year.
Williams’ lone season as a featured back left a strong impression on NFL scouts. He racked up 995 yards and 12 touchdowns on only 158 carries (6.3-yard average). His modest collegiate workload (279 touches in four years) was largely viewed as a positive during the pre-draft process.
This past summer, Williams showed an explosive first step between the tackles to become the Packers’ top rusher in the preseason (128 rushing yards and a TD on 37 carries) to claim a spot on the team’s 53.
Once the calendar flipped to September, however, the keys to the backfield were again handed to Jones and Jamaal Williams. In the meantime, Dexter Williams has been busy working with position coach Ben Sirmans on further learning the offensive scheme and backfield protections.
“He’s progressed really well on the practice field, in the classroom,” said Sirmans last week. “The only thing (now) is you don’t have the preseason to throw him in there to test the waters to see if everything that he’s done to prep himself that he’s ready to go. Now, it’s real live football. But everything he’s done, that I’ve seen, leads me to believe (despite not) having the opportunity to throw him out there in real games yet that he’s ready to go.”