Mike Williams is back in Los Angeles.

The veteran wide receiver, who agreed to terms with the Chargers on Wednesday, met with local media members on Friday.

Here are five takeaways from Williams' press conference:

1. Back in powder blue

Welcome back, Mike Williams.

The Chargers officially re-introduced the No. 7 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft last Friday after agreeing to terms with the wide receiver Wednesday.

There were a number of smiles in the building for the 30-year-old receiver, who was a mainstay for the Bolts in his first seven seasons.

Williams wore the biggest smile as he was ecstatic to be back where it all began.

"Amazing," Williams said. "A lot of similar faces. It feels good."

Williams made his mark in his seven seasons donning powder blue, as he is 10^th all-time on the Chargers franchise receiving yards list with 4,806 yards. He also is 13^th in receptions (309) and touchdowns (31).

Now a year away from being with the Bolts, he was grateful for the opportunity to come back.

"On my end, I just want to thank the Spanos Family, Coach [Jim] Harbaugh, Joe [Hortiz], for just another opportunity to come here and play football," Williams said.

"I never wanted to leave on my side, but it's the business part of football and things happen," Williams added. "Now I'm back and happy to be back."

Williams split his time last season between the Jets and Steelers and finished the 2024 season with 21 catches for 298 yards and a touchdown.

While it might not have been the type of season he was looking for stat-wise, the veteran receiver called last season a "good experience" learning from some of the best.

But now his focus shifts towards the place he knew for almost all of his career.

Oh, and catching passes from quarterback Justin Herbert.

"It was a pretty good year looking at the game from a different angle and learning a lot of new things about a lot of new people," Williams said. "I'm just focused on this year now, back with Justin and the guys and ready to get back to being me, having fun playing football."

2. Joining a Harbaugh team

Even a year away, Williams saw a change in the Chargers from afar.

The Bolts went 11-5 and made the playoffs in Harbaugh's first season, a strong step as they continue to build the program and culture.

Seeing where the Chargers are at now is something that stood out to Williams, who noticed the change Harbaugh brought to town.

"The leader that Harbaugh is. Everywhere he's been, he's been a winner," Williams said. "He came here, went to the playoffs in the first season.

"That's the goal, to build off that," Williams added. "The main goal is to win a Super Bowl and I think we're working towards that."

And while Williams hasn't been a part of a Harbaugh team before, he is well-aware what type of brand of football is going to be played.

He sees it in the addition of his teammate in Pittsburgh last year Najee Harris, who now brings physicality in the backfield.

"It starts up front as you can see," Williams said. "We just got Najee, just played with Najee in Pittsburgh. He runs hard and you got to block for him also because you never know.

"The first one will never bring him down. Tough, gritty," Williams added. "Just watching from afar, it starts in the running game."

Williams is fired up to be able to contribute to this iteration of the Chargers.

"It looked pretty good watching from afar," Williams said. "I'm excited to be a part of it."

3. Looking to bounce back

Williams was blunt when asked if he had something to prove coming off of last season.

"Yeah, I feel like cause last year was terrible for me," Williams said with his trademark laugh. "I'm just being honest. It was terrible. Probably the worst year I had in the league by far."

The wide receiver is embracing a fresh start back with the Bolts coming off a season with his lowest yardage total in a season where he played double-digit games.

Williams became one of the few players in modern NFL history to play in 18 games last season, but saw workload drop a bit in his stops in New York and Pittsburgh.

And while recovering with the ACL injury he suffered in 2023, he also had to go through a change in teams, which was a whole new change in and of itself.

"I wouldn't say it was football-wise, it was the whole ACL thing," Williams said. "Doing rehab here and then the whole process having to go somewhere else who never worked on you before and having to start there where you were at.

"There's a lot of things that go into it. It is what it is, it happened," Williams said. "I feel comfortable now, I'm back where I want to be and ready to go."

Not to mention, he missed a lot of the offseason program while still recovering from his injury and struggled to find the chemistry in a new offense and players.

"I wouldn't say rust. I got hurt the third game [in 2023], missed OTAs, missed training camp, going to a new quarterback, new everything," Williams said. "Not being able to get those reps and everything in practice, those type of things is probably what it was the most."

He later added: "My snap volume wasn't the same as always, but played in every game. Whenever my number was called, made plays. I felt comfortable."

Now over a year removed from suffering the injury, Williams said he's feeling good and ready to turn the page back where it all started.

"I'm just putting it in the past, that was the past," Williams added. "Trying to make it feel like it didn't happen for me. Just getting back to what I'm used to doing and having fun.

"That's my main thing," Williams said. "This is where it all started and I'm excited to be back."

4. Reunited with Herbert

Part of the excitement in coming back to L.A.? Being able to catch passes again from Justin Herbert.

The wide receiver is one of Herbert's favorite targets and has caught 18 touchdown passes from him, which is good for the second-most of any receiver No. 10 has played with.

In the four seasons the two played with another, Williams had 187 receptions for 2,797 yards in 44 games.

"Just the past, everything we've done in the past, the amount of plays we made and having fun out there and celebrating with the guys," Williams said. "Just excited to do it again and looking forward to it."

Williams said he and Herbert stayed in contact throughout last season and even talked to him a couple of days before, as the two are fired up to be together again.

And he doesn't expect too much rust in the connection, as they've played a lot of football and have the chemistry that comes with the experience.

"We played a lot of football together," Williams said. "I feel like he trusts me, he just puts the ball up and I go get it. That's the main thing.

"I feel like we gained a lot of trust in each other over the years and I'm excited just to get back with him, get on the field and starting gaining that connection back and making plays again," Williams added.

His quarterback is the same, but the room he is entering looks quite different than even a year ago.

Williams joins a position group headlined by Ladd McConkey, who broke Chargers franchise rookie records in receiving yards and catches.

He's fully aware of the type of season McConkey had and now as the veteran in the room, Williams said he is looking forward to being a veteran leader just like others were to him when he was younger.

"For me, just being that guy that Keenan [Allen] was to me," Williams said. "Small things in running routes, after catch, blocking in the run game, just small things. Need to watch more film to see where he can improve on when we get together this offseason."

And given the season McConkey had last season, Williams joked he might even take some things from him and try to replicate him.

"I'm going to take things from him," Williams said with a laugh. "He had an awesome season, I had a terrible season, so maybe I need to learn something from him.

"Getting with him and seeing what I can learn from him also and whatever he can take from me, take it," Williams added.

He is also reunited with third-year wide receiver Quentin Johnston, with whom he spent a year with in 2023.

Williams saw the jump Johnston had in Year 2 with a bigger year than the first and is looking to keep that momentum going.

"Q made a big jump from his first year," Williams said.

He later added: "When he first got drafted, met up, told him we all expect greatness… This year, he made plays. Looking forward to building off that and keep going."

5. First time at The Bolt

Some new faces weren't the only thing Williams saw in his return to the team.

The veteran wide receiver also got his first tour of The Bolt, the new Chargers state-of-the-art facility that opened last summer.

It's safe to say Williams came away impressed from the moment he arrived on location.

"Probably the outside of the building, just pulling up to it," Williams said. "It looks nice. The best facility I've been to by far.

"Just pulling up to it, the locker room is nice, everything is nice for sure," Williams added.

It's now the third facility that Williams will spend time as a member of the Chargers, and the veteran joked it's got him feeling like time is going by too fast.

"I got to see three buildings," Williams said with a laugh. "Feeling kind of old though now."