Jacksonville’s rookie receiver CJ Williams has already started building a case for snaps, and he’s doing it the old-fashioned way: showing up, catching everything in sight and making the most of every rep.
The Jaguars took Williams in the sixth round of the 2026 NFL Draft, No. 203 overall, after a college path that took him from USC to Wisconsin and then to a breakout finish at Stanford. That final stop is the one that changed everything. Williams put up career highs with 59 catches, 749 yards and six touchdowns in 2025, then added All-ACC honorable mention recognition and team offensive MVP honors to his résumé.
Before that late surge, his journey had plenty of stops and starts. He came out of high school as a 4-star, Top 100 recruit and originally committed to Notre Dame, but ended up at USC for his freshman year.
He played in 11 games for the Trojans and finished with four receptions for 34 yards. At Wisconsin, he never fully found his footing, totaling 31 catches for 396 yards and two touchdowns across two seasons and 25 games.
Stanford gave him the stage to take off, and Williams said the program’s structure helped prepare him for what comes next.
“The way that we treated things was you’ve got to be on your best type of timing, I guess you could say,” Williams said of the Stanford culture. “You’ve got to be on your best pro behavior every single day. You’ve got to come into the facility ready to work."
That pro-style feel mattered to Jacksonville, and so did the way Williams finished. He ranked in the top 10 in the ACC in receiving touchdowns, receptions and receiving yards, which pushed his stock into Day 3 territory and made him a fit for the Jaguars.
The wait on draft night was tense. Williams watched other receivers come off the board before his name was called, wondering when the phone would finally ring.
When it did, he said Jacksonville wasn’t a surprise. He believed the Jaguars had interest even without a direct conversation.
General manager James Gladstone joked that he had kept things pretty quiet, but he also praised Williams for two traits that stand out right away: his willingness to block and his ability to attack the football.
That showed up quickly once offseason work began. Head coach Liam Coen said Williams was already making noise in the passing game.
“I think he leads the team in receptions right now,” head coach Liam Coen said of Williams earlier in the offseason. “He's getting a lot of reps mixing in with a couple different groups, but you talk about what's the job for a receiver is to get open and catch the ball and he just kind of does that.”
While Brian Thomas Jr. has been the headliner with the starting group, Williams has been busy making plays with the reserves. During a stretch of media-access practices, he stacked impressive catches in back-to-back days.
Some were contested grabs. Others were the kind of routine-but-important completions that keep drives moving.
Either way, he made himself noticeable before training camp even arrived.
Receivers coach Edgar Bennet said the rookie’s work habits have stood out just as much as the catches.
“He comes in day-in and day-out and he puts a lot into it. He’s one of the last guys to leave the building,” receivers coach Edgar Bennet said.
“He really puts a lot into it. He wants to succeed at this level and be the best version of himself.”
Williams also gave a clear answer when asked which NFL receivers he studies. He pointed to teammates Parker Washington and Jakobi Meyers, and also mentioned Brian Thomas Jr. He said he likes the consistency, intent and physicality Washington and Meyers bring, and sees those traits as part of what he can add too.
“I just want to be a complete guy that competes and adds to the room in whatever way possible,” Williams said. “Whether it’s just first year playing special teams, whether it's doing whatever, competing every single day, and just bringing a competitive swagger is the way I like to view it.”
That mindset gives him a real shot to crack the rotation. Jacksonville’s receiver room is crowded, but there’s a path here.
Travis Hunter is expected to spend most of his snaps on defense, even though he’ll still have an offensive role, which leaves the fourth receiver spot up for grabs. There are plenty of names in the mix, from veterans to other newcomers, but Williams has given himself a head start by picking up the offense quickly and making plays early.
As Bennet put it, the early success matters because it builds confidence and clears the mental clutter.
“When you’re going out and making some great plays now, it’s only going to help you as you move forward as far as confidence,” Bennett said. “I understand this fundamental or this technique, my alignment and assignment. Now I can just focus on pre-snap, post-snap, the technique that I’m using and all these little things as we move forward.”
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