By John Rigolizzo

The Los Angeles Chargers confirmed on Thursday that wide receiver Mike Williams has retired at age 30.

Williams was a first-round pick of the Chargers and spent seven years with the team. He spent the 2024 season with the New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers, then re-signed with Los Angeles in the offseason. Williams had been placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list due to a minor injury suffered in the offseason program, but injuries have plagued him throughout his career.

Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz had previously said Williams was dealing with a minor injury.

“Just working through something small and could be out there any day,” Hortiz said on Wednesday via the Chargers’ official website, as veterans returned to training camp.

Hortiz said he expected Williams and safety Elijah Molden to be practicing soon.

“They’re both close,” he said. “They could be any day. You guys could come out one day, and they’re not here, next day they’ll be out there practicing. They can come off any time.”

A college football national champion with the Clemson Tigers, Williams was drafted by the Chargers with the seventh overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. During his rookie offseason, he suffered a herniated disc in his lower back that caused him to miss the entirety of training camp and the first six weeks of the 2017 season. He also missed a game with a knee injury. He played in 10 games with one start, and caught 11 passes for 95 yards.

He played his first full season in 2018, appearing in all 16 games with 5 starts. He had 43 receptions for 664 yards and a career-high 10 touchdowns, adding 7 rushes for 28 yards and a touchdown. He had his first 1,000-yard season as a receiver in 2019, with 49 catches for 1,001 yards and 2 TDs. In 2020, he had 48 receptions for 756 yards and 5 scores.

Williams had his best season in 2021, with career highs in receptions (76) and yards (1,146) and 9 TDs. He played just 13 games in 2022, with 63 catches for 895 yards and 4 TDs. He suffered a transverse process fracture in the final game of the season against the Denver Broncos that caused him to miss the playoffs. He then played just 3 games in 2023 due to a torn ACL.

Williams signed a one-year deal with the New York Jets in 2024. In mid-season, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers. He caught a total of 21 passes for 298 yards and 1 touchdown that season.

Without Williams, the Chargers will turn to 2024 second-round pick Ladd McConkey, who led the team in receptions (82) and receiving yards (1,149) as a rookie; 2023 first-round pick Quentin Johnston, who led the team in receiving TDs with 8 last season but has something of a reputation for ugly drops in big moments; 2025 second-round pick Tre Harris; speedy return specialist Derius Davis; and veteran Jalen Reagor to contribute at the top of the depth chart this season. The Chargers also have KeAndre Lambert-Smith, Brenden Rice, Dez Fitzpatrick, Jaylen Johnson, Dalevon Campbell, and Luke Grimm on the roster.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert paid tribute to his former teammate.

I want what’s best for Mike,” Herbert said.

“He’s always been there for us, and we’re going to be there for him. It’s obviously a tough situation.

“I’ve got so much respect for him as a teammate, as a friend, as a receiver, as a player, and the man that he is. Football, at the end of the day, is a game, and there’s more to life than just football.”

Herbert praised Williams’s work ethic and leadership. He also talked about Williams’s one-handed toe-tap catch along the sideline against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 17 of the 2022 season.

“Those 50-50 balls weren’t really 50-50,” Herbert said of the 6-foot-4, 218-pound receiver.

“He‘d come down with them, and he’s a guy that was just always a red zone threat and someone that you had to cover, and sometimes you had to double him, and even then you he’d find a way to come down with the ball. So to have a guy like that, it was only going to make your team better.

“It was an honor to play alongside him, to throw him the ball. Definitely heartbreaking, tough news to hear about, but we’ve got his back no matter what.”