Damien

Williams

It’s a strong indication James Conner (knee) will be ready to go after having his injured reserve practice window opened earlier this week. 31-year-old Williams is looking near the end of the line of his long, interesting career.

In James Conner’s absence, Demercado has emerged as the lead back for the Cardinals. He handled a career-high 21 touches against the Ravens in Week 8 and now misses the first practice of the week with a toe injury. If Demercado can return to practice later in the week, it would enhance his chances of leading the backfield again for Week 9. However, if he does not play, Keaontay Ingram and Damien Williams are next in line.

Last week, Williams second on the team in rushing with eight carries for 36 yards. This week, he was a very distant back-up to Emari Demercado in what was a total unexpected curveball from the Cardinals coaches. Williams was not in on passing downs last week and had just one rush this week, so even though he played ahead of Keaontay Ingram, he’s not a recommended bench stash in any fantasy leagues.

To many people’s surprise, it was Williams and not Emari Demercado to come in as the Cardinals’ RB2. Williams performed decently with the opportunities he had considering the offense was stuck in neutral. Even though he saw nine total touches, you shouldn’t be in a rush to add Williams.

The running back-needy Cardinals bring up the veteran back for depth behind Keaontay Ingram and Emari Demercado. This could be a regular occurrence for at least three of the four games that lead back James Conner will miss while on injured reserve.

Williams was with the Raiders for a few weeks of training camp, but was released during final cuts. The veteran running back hasn’t logged a regular season touch since Week 1 of last season, and is unlikely to make any kind of a major impact for the Cardinals this season if he ever finds his way on the 53-man roster.

Williams’ only real shot at making the Raiders’ 53-man roster was dependent on Josh Jacobs holding out. With Williams now back on the team, the 31-year-old Williams became expendable and has now been left off the team. Williams appeared in one game for the Falcons last season and has totaled just 42 carries for 166 yards since 2021. It’s possible this is the last we see of Williams.

Williams beat out ex-Texans RB Rex Burkhead after both backs visited the team last week. The Raiders adding Williams suggests they don’t expect unsigned franchise RB Josh Jacobs to report anytime soon. Williams was limited to one game before getting released from Atlanta last year and is a longshot for the Week 1 roster.

Williams appeared in one game for the Falcons last season and took two carries for two whole yards. The 31-year-old vet was let go in mid-December and didn’t garner much attention this offseason prior to last week’s visit with the Cardinals. Even if he signs with the Raiders, it’s unlikely Williams will secure a spot on the 53-man roster. In addition to Williams, the Raiders also met with 33-year-old Rex Burkhead.

The 31-year-old ex-Chief was mostly out of the league last season, making one appearance for the Falcons. Although the Cardinals are severely short on running back depth, Williams would be facing long odds of cracking the 53-man roster.