K'Waun Williams is one of the smallest members of the 49ers' secondary, but he could play the biggest role in Super Bowl LIV on Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Williams is the 49ers' nickel corner, and primarily is tasked with covering receivers in the slot. Thanks in large part to the presence of Tyreek Hill, Pro Football Focus found that the Chiefs ranked first in the NFL in expected points per play on average when targeting slot receivers and inline tight ends (0.679). When comparing Kansas City to the NFL's average when targeting players lined up in the slot (0.251) and at inline tight end (0.279), the Chiefs' slot success is astounding.
But Williams is capable of slowing down the Chiefs in the slot, according to former NFL receiver Andrew Hawkins.
"I think the unsung hero of that secondary is K'Waun Williams," Hawkins told NBC Sports Bay Area's Scott Bair from Super Bowl Radio Row in Miami on Thursday. "I think he's the best nickel corner in football."
Hawkins, who now co-hosts "The ThomaHawk Show" podcast with former Cleveland Browns offensive lineman Joe Thomas, played with Williams during the nickel corner's first two seasons in the NFL. Williams joined the Browns as an undrafted cornerback, Hawkins as a flashy free-agent signing.
That didn't matter when the two played against each other in practice.
"We would go 50-50 at best because he was that good then, and he's only gotten better," Hawkins recalled. "It's the ability to say, 'Hey, whoever's in the slot is going to get locked down.' That makes it hard. That's an outlet for a quarterback who has an incredible pass rush coming at him, so it's very important to have that nickel be on his 'Ps and Qs' because that's the quick outlet pass the quarterback is relying on."
Williams made an impression on Hawkins, and on then-Browns offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, too. Shanahan was only in Cleveland for one season in 2014, but Williams was one of the 49ers' first free-agent signings after Shanahan was hired as coach early in 2017.
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The looming Williams-Hill matchup is one of many that composes a strength vs. strength battle every time the 49ers' defense and Chiefs' offense take the field Sunday. Williams containing Hill would go a long way towards San Francisco winning its sixth Super Bowl on Sunday.
You can watch the full interview with Hawkins in the player above.
Programming note: NBC Sports Bay Area feeds your hunger for 49ers Super Bowl coverage with special editions of “49ers Central” all week (8:30 p.m. Thursday, 9:30 p.m. Friday, and 3 p.m. Saturday).
Also tune in at 1 p.m. on Super Bowl Sunday for a two-hour special of "49ers Pregame Live" with Laura Britt, Donte Whitner, Jeff Garcia, Ian Williams, Kelli Johnson, Greg Papa and Grant Liffmann. That same crew will have all the postgame reaction on "49ers Postgame Live," starting immediately after the game.
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