Kansas City Chiefs 2025 third-round pick Nohl Williams was all over the field at minicamp, according to a news update from team reporter Matt McMullen as KC headed into summer break. And that’s huge news for the Chiefs, as the cornerback position will be a bit of a “trust fall” in 2026.
“Second-year corner Nohl Williams was everywhere,” McMullen told fans. “He made numerous plays on the ball across 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills, including an interception in the end zone.”
“[Williams has] looked strong throughout the offseason and has the look of a player ready to make a big jump in year number two,” the team reporter concluded.
In part, the Chiefs’ trust in Williams led to two major decisions this offseason. Kansas City shocked the NFL world, trading star CB Trent McDuffie to a potential Super Bowl threat on the NFC side, and then they doubled down on the youth when they elected to pass on re-signing Jaylen Watson.
Watson’s valuation ended up being three years, $51 million, and that was not a price the Chiefs were willing to pay, as the former seventh-rounder decided to join McDuffie on the Los Angeles Rams. Williams may directly slot in for Watson long term.
Now, it remains to be seen if KC made the right choice moving on from McDuffie and Watson, but Williams’ rise played a huge role in this massive leap of faith. That, and the confidence they had in 2026 first-round draft prospect Mansoor Delane.
Make no mistake, it will be Williams and Delane who lead this new Chiefs cornerback core. Veterans like Kristian Fulton and L’Jarius Sneed were brought in — or back in the case of the latter — to help with the transition, but those two recent draft picks are the future.
Kansas City Chiefs Need Nohl Williams to Continue to Take the Next Step at Training Camp
GettyThe Kansas City Chiefs are relying on second-year cornerback Nohl Williams.
A good OTAs and minicamp is one thing, but Williams has to continue his development at training camp if the Chiefs will feel comfortable starting him in Week 1.
That’s probably the end result that Kansas City wants, but it’s no guarantee after the Sneed reunion.
With Sneed, Fulton, and Delane, the Chiefs have three cornerbacks with either more experience or a higher draft status than Williams. However, it remains to be seen if Sneed and Fulton can regain the form of their prime NFL years.
Kansas City also took flyers on former first-round talent Kaiir Elam and nickel specialist Kader Kohou, not to mention general manager Brett Veach selected another nickel option in Jadon Canady in round four.
Add versatile safeties and DBs like Chamarri Conner, Jaden Hicks, Christian Roland-Wallace, and Kevin Knowles to the mix, and the Chiefs have no shortage of possibilities in the secondary.
Having said that, Williams appears to have the starting talent that some of the other DBs above might not. If he can take the jump that McMullen discussed, it will do wonders for the Chiefs’ Super Bowl chances.
A Look at Chiefs CB Nohl Williams’ Rookie Season Amid Standout News
Williams technically suited up for all 17 games as a rookie, but he was only credited with 5 starts.
The snap count is more revealing, as Williams played 44% of the defensive snaps (457 total snaps) and 66% of the special teams snaps (280 total snaps).
The draft pick allowed 52.5% of his targets against to be completed, for a total of 276 yards and 1 touchdown. 155 of those yards allowed were air yards, while the other 121 were yards after the catch.
Williams also added 1 sack, 4 tackles for a loss, and 7 pass defenses.
For reference, McDuffie allowed a 63.3% completion rate in 2025 and was only credited with 7 pass defenses in 689 defensive snaps. That’s not to say Williams is better — or even comparable to McDuffie — but clearly, he’s on the right track, so far.
Chiefs Youngster Was ‘Everywhere’ at Minicamp, Supporting $51 Million Decision