The Chargers will take Mike Williams off the PUP list in advance of the regular season, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
A lingering back injury had the first-round pick’s rookie season in doubt, but this move signals the Chargers believe he will be ready to contribute early in the season. Williams remaining on the PUP list would have shelved him for the first six weeks of the Bolts’ season.
The most recent news on the former Clemson star indicated a possible October return was in the cards, and Rapoport hears (Twitter link) that’s still the tentative plan. The herniated disc Williams suffered is still not believed to require surgery; he’s been rehabbing it for several weeks now.
Williams missed Los Angeles’ training camp and did not play during the preseason. The No. 7 overall pick returning would strengthen a Chargers offense that’s also getting Keenan Allen back. Allen, Mike Williams, Tyrell Williams and Travis Benjamin would quietly form one of the league’s most intriguing wideout contingents — one that could be the deepest of Philip Rivers‘ career.
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