Several members of the Kansas City Chiefs‘ rookie class are making an impact, but a select few have managed to rise above the rest. One player on each side of the ball, in particular, has stood out.
On defense, that man is none other than cornerback Nohl Williams. Prior to the club’s Week 10 bye, the third-round pick made a name for himself in multiple areas.
Now that Kansas City is back to work, Williams’ coaches have high praise for how he’ll fare the rest of the way.
Dave Toub Praises Nohl Williams for Special Teams Contributions in Rookie Season
Speaking to the media ahead of Week 11’s game against the Denver Broncos, special teams coordinator and assistant head coach Dave Toub tipped his cap to Williams. He believes the No. 85 overall pick from Cal has a future as a serious NFL player.
“Excellent,” Toub said of Williams. “I mean, he’s been making tackles on kickoff. He’s playing gunner. He’s fast, and he’s a really instinctive player. The future’s real bright for him, I think, for sure.”
Nine games into the year, Williams’ 137 special teams snaps rank third on the team. Only fellow cornerback Joshua Williams (143) and linebacker Jack Cochrane (159) have logged more. The first-year man has played double-digit snaps in that realm in each of his games thus far. Even in games where he’s had 20+ defensive reps, he’s averaged 15.5 opportunities in the third phase of the game.
Williams’ snaps range from kickoff coverage (49) to kick return blocking (34), punt return protection (26), field goal coverage (18) or primary punt duty (10). According to Pro Football Focus, 37 rookies have played at least 100 special teams snaps this season. His 69.2 composite special teams grade ranks 12th, just behind Chiefs rookie linebacker Cooper McDonald.
It isn’t the most glamorous part of football, but it’s an absolute necessity. For someone like Williams, it’s a supplementary part of his profile that allows him to win over coaches like Toub. Down the stretch of the 2025-26 campaign, that prowess and trust will come in handy.
Steve Spagnuolo Leaving Door Open for Significant Williams Workload After Chiefs’ Bye
Of course, unless you’re a special teams nerd, you didn’t necessarily come here for that. Defense is where Williams earns his keep — and could earn a nice payday years down the line, if he continues to make progress.
Early in the year, the rookie didn’t see the field a ton on defense. He went snap-less in Week 1, then had all of eight chances in Week 2. After 19- and 20-snap efforts in the next two games, that total dropped to just four in Week 5. Although Week 8 saw Williams play just eight defensive snaps, he averages just over 24 in his last four contests.
That didn’t happen by accident. Speaking after Toub on Thursday, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said he makes a conscious effort to give his players more to handle over time.
“As the season goes, we try to add because we feel like we can with our guys,” Spagnuolo said. “I think you can only do that if you’ve got trust [that] the guys are going to pick it up and do it. There is part of that.”
Williams, despite being a rookie, is no different. Not only did he set a career-high mark with 7 tackles in Week 9’s 28-21 loss to the Buffalo Bills, but he did so on a personal-best 44 defensive snaps. His next-closest 2025 total is 24.
Spagnuolo acknowledged the increase, citing it as a matchup-related decision. He wanted to get star cornerback Trent McDuffie in the slot more, thus requiring some heavy involvement for Williams on the boundary.
“It was a little bit more there,” Spagnuolo said. “I mean, their slot player’s pretty good. I think we talked about this before — every week’s going to be a little bit different. We’ll see where we’re at this week as well.”
Williams is shining on defense, surrendering a solid 76.4 passer rating in coverage. His 76.8 PFF coverage grade ranks 11th out of 188 cornerbacks.
That’s what’s causing Williams to draw attention, in addition to plenty of praise, as his debut campaign continues.
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