​Evan Williams is one of the Green Bay Packers’ biggest draft success stories in recent times as a fourth-round pick who had an impact on their defense almost immediately as a rookie and has since settled in as a valued starter.Not one of the more heralded draft prospects, the Packers traded up to get Williams back in 2024 and were proven right in their conviction on the former Oregon and Fresno State safety.After a strong first year, Williams followed it up in 2025, as shown by his percentile ranks at the safety position in his first and second seasons.Williams only started seven games as a rookie, as he was originally behind Javon Bullard, before he made the move to the slot. From there, Williams never gave up the starting safety spot opposite Xavier McKinney, starting all but one game in 2025.His snap count almost doubled from 533 to 979 between his first and second year, and even with the larger workload, there was no dip in Williams’ performance.In coverage, there was a stylistic difference in Williams’ game in 2025, as his strengths and weaknesses were somewhat inverted from his rookie year.He allowed a higher rate of catches, as his reception rate allowed went up from 57.7% to 71.8%, and going hand in hand with that, Williams forced fewer incompletions, dropping from a 12% rate down to 3% in 2025, as he only had one pass break up, compared to three in 2024.Other coverage statistics improved though. He grabbed three picks and gave up only two touchdowns in 2025, compared to one interception and three scores allowed in the previous year.Williams showed instincts by jumping in front of a Jared Goff pass in Week 1, and he helped seal a hair-raising win against the Giants later in the year by picking off Jameis Winston on the final drive.His yards per reception allowed dropped from 11.2 to 10.7, and his NFL passer rating allowed went from 99.5 as a rookie to 78.9 in 2025.The biggest change in Williams’ role was his increased presence in the box. He played 303 snaps there in 2025, way up from just 91 the year prior. Departed defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley relied on Williams to come down and be an important part of the run defense, and he delivered.Combining both the run and pass game, he was very active, racking up 101 total tackles per PFF, and ranking second among all safeties in assisted tackles per snap.Williams’ stops per snap dropped slightly, but his missed tackle rate improved from 14.8% to 12.2%, taking him from decidedly below average to slightly above average at the safety position.Penalties are something Williams needs to clean up in 2026, as he was flagged five times last season, up from zero penalties in 2024.Overall, Williams was marginally better in coverage, keeping his status as an above average coverage safety – although he got there in a different way in terms of strengths and weaknesses – and was a far more impactful run defender; one the better safeties in the league in that regard.It will be interesting to tr