Sometimes an opportunity simply comes down to being in the right place at the right time.
And for newly acquired WR Mike Williams, that was never more true than late in the fourth quarter of Sunday's game, when on his first target as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers, he won the game for the Black and Gold.
Turns out, he wasn't even supposed to be in on that play:
"Calvin [Austin III] went out, he was running that route all week," Mike Williams said after the game. "He actually ran it early in the game. It was for him and he was out. I went in there and made a play.”
Welcome to the Black and Gold Mike Williams #Steelers
— Rob Gregson (@NFL_Rob) November 10, 2024
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A play was made indeed, as after only three practices in Pittsburgh, it was Williams who ended up being the savior in a game that if not for a botched fake punt, likely wouldn't have been close.
Instead, the Steelers battled back from a 10-point deficit in the second half, rallied and made the requisite plays on both sides of the ball to come away with victory in what was their toughest test to date.
"It was a big-time catch by Mike [Williams]," said QB Russell Wilson after the game. "I just tried to give him a chance and let him do his thing. A guy who's made plays, a guy who's faced some adversity. You love it when guys face adversity and they come through on the other end of it. He had a great week of practice. I thought all of our guys had a great week of practice. We battled. We knew this is a really good football team. And they played hard. They played tough throughout the game. And we knew it would come down to the wire.”
Whether it was the injury history, getting released by the Los Angeles Chargers in the offseason, or being traded after being an afterthought with the New York Jets, the adversity that Wilson spoke to certainly made the TD catch that much sweeter for Williams.
But now comes the real work. With a second full week of practice on tap for Baltimore Ravens week, it's time for Williams to fully assume the WR #2 role in Pittsburgh and give Steelers GM Omar Khan and HC Mike Tomlin the last laugh after many questioned their trade choice.
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