Patriots’ WR Kyle Williams is staying upbeat despite limited training camp snaps

FOXBOROUGH – Once he reached the podium after practice, Kyle Williams took a deep breath, shook his head and said “let’s do it.”

He had a smile on his face at the beginning of the press conference, and he didn’t hesitate to answer questions.

The second-year receiver is competing for a spot in a crowded wide receiver room, and opportunities to play with Drake Maye and the rest of the offensive starters have been limited for Williams over the first few days of this training camp.

“It’s just control the controllables,” Williams said, when asked about how he stays patient during the situation. “A lot of things are out of my control.

“When I get a chance to be able to control those things, I try to take the most of it, but I don’t really have expectations. I just show up every day ready to take advantage of the opportunities given to me.”

So far in camp, Kayshon Boutte has been the biggest standout amongst the receivers. He has caught deep passes in three of the four practices, including another lengthy touchdown on Tuesday.

A.J. Brown hasn’t flashed much yet during camp, but is expected to be the team’s top receiver. Romeo Doubs, expected to be in the mix for the WR2 spot, has also had a quiet start to camp. DeMario Douglas and Mack Hollins have both made plays. Efton Chism, who starred during last preseason, is also in camp fighting for a roster spot.

That’s a lot of competition for the five or six spots that might be available at the end of camp. Sometimes, as former Patriots receiver Troy Brown recalled last month, teams keep seven receivers. But, that’s not how it usually goes.

“It’s just making the most of my opportunities,” Williams said of the competition. “You don’t know what’s promised and what’s not, so it’s just every day coming up whether it’s in the film room, meetings on the field, pre-practice, after practice just doing extra stuff to give myself the advantage to take these opportunities.”

Williams showed flashes of big-play ability last year. His 72-yard touchdown against the Buccaneers was New England’s longest play of the season. However, that catch was more than a third of his total yardage for the season.

Three of his 10 catches went for 20 yards or more. He averaged 20.9 yards per catch. He scored three touchdowns, which put him tied for fourth among Patriots pass-catchers despite having just 21 targets.

There were flashes last year, but not enough consistency to overtake the other players at his position. The speedy receiver hopes the work he put in the weight room this offseason will help put him contribute more regularly.

He said spending time with Mack Hollins encouraged him to work harder and get stronger. He said he hopes he’s still around 190 pounds with the added muscle.

He listed physicality at the top of routes and off the line releases and two aspects of his game that he is confident he has improved.

Balancing the weight gain while maintaining speed takes “a lot of running,” he said.

“They say you lose your speed if you don’t use you speed,” Williams said. “So, every day in the offseason just continuing to hit that max velocity, getting on the track and everything. Just continuing to run full speed to maintain everything.”

Coach Mike Vrabel acknowledged Williams and three other teammates for their offseason work, naming them offseason award winners.

“We had a lot of really good efforts in there, and I thought guys made strides,” Vrabel said. “But it was good to see those guys from year one to year two be able to help us establish something in the offseason.”

The receiver room is crowded, but the Patriots are still cycling though receivers and running backs in hopes of finding consistent kick returners, Vrabel said.

Williams fielded 11 kicks last season, third-most on the team behind Efton Chism (16) and Antonio Gibson (12). He averaged 26.4 yards per return, which was third behind Gibson and Terrell Jennings.

New England cut Gibson during the offseason after he suffered a season-ending knee injury. Jennings has begun camp on the non football injury list, and it’s not yet clear when he’ll be cleared to practice.

Last month, receivers coach Todd Downing said the ability to contribute on special teams plays a factor when evaluating the back-end of the receiver depth chart.

“I think back end of the depth chart or front end of the depth chart, you should be looking for every way that you can to help the team,” Downing said. “Certainly availability is one of the best abilities you can have, and guys that know what to do and how to do it on special teams, they usually find a way to get a jersey.”

“Obviously a very talented room, but I think from top to bottom those guys should be looking at how they can help in any phase.”

This summer’s competition in the receiver room is just beginning. Williams says it will make the team get better.

“Iron sharpens iron, so when you have A.J., Pop, Mack, from the top down these dudes can play,” Williams said. “It just forces you to come out here and compete at a higher level and not have any slack in your game.”

Khari A. Thompson

Sports Reporter

Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.