Roy Williams Prognosis In DAL.... (1 Viewer)

[Toads]

Speak to me, oh prognosticator's of The Crystal Ball.

Is there any reason to believe that Williams benefits from this scenario? Isn't Hamlin a run stopper (SS) and isn't that a duplicate of Williams roll? Or, does Williams move into a different roll and become more valuable than last year's stats?

Any way Williams benefit's in this deal?

 

[Jene Bramel]

Despite the Dallas homers loud protestations in the Shark Pool thread, unless the 2003 version of Ken Hamlin shows up in 2007 the situation in the Cowboy secondary hasn't changed much from a coverage and tackling perspective.

Wade Phillips is on record as saying Hamlin is a better player than he's recently shown and that he'll use Williams up in the box frequently. Bodes well for Williams but it remains to be seen if Hamlin can be better than Watkins, Coleman, or Davis had been. Hamlin's got one of those one year "show-me" deals that many have gotten later in free agency. Maybe that will be enough to motivate him and keep Williams' value steady.

 

[Toads]

Despite the Dallas homers loud protestations in the Shark Pool thread, unless the 2003 version of Ken Hamlin shows up in 2007 the situation in the Cowboy secondary hasn't changed much from a coverage and tackling perspective.Wade Phillips is on record as saying Hamlin is a better player than he's recently shown and that he'll use Williams up in the box frequently. Bodes well for Williams but it remains to be seen if Hamlin can be better than Watkins, Coleman, or Davis had been. Hamlin's got one of those one year "show-me" deals that many have gotten later in free agency. Maybe that will be enough to motivate him and keep Williams' value steady.

JB, a good "two cents" there.Looks to me that Williams therefore stands a reasonable chance of being a border line stud in tackle leagues....moving "into the box" equates to a re-defined roll designed to keep him out of his weak area, that being pass coverage, and get him into his string roll, an 8th man in the box.Phillips is the guy that can maximize Williams value cause williams was a borderline top 30 safety, most league, last year.What I'm trying to do is define his keeper value over Barton, NYJ-LB, in a tackle reward league....extra points after the five tackle threshold is met.

 

[Jene Bramel]

Despite the Dallas homers loud protestations in the Shark Pool thread, unless the 2003 version of Ken Hamlin shows up in 2007 the situation in the Cowboy secondary hasn't changed much from a coverage and tackling perspective.Wade Phillips is on record as saying Hamlin is a better player than he's recently shown and that he'll use Williams up in the box frequently. Bodes well for Williams but it remains to be seen if Hamlin can be better than Watkins, Coleman, or Davis had been. Hamlin's got one of those one year "show-me" deals that many have gotten later in free agency. Maybe that will be enough to motivate him and keep Williams' value steady.

JB, a good "two cents" there.Looks to me that Williams therefore stands a reasonable chance of being a border line stud in tackle leagues....moving "into the box" equates to a re-defined roll designed to keep him out of his weak area, that being pass coverage, and get him into his string roll, an 8th man in the box.Phillips is the guy that can maximize Williams value cause williams was a borderline top 30 safety, most league, last year.What I'm trying to do is define his keeper value over Barton, NYJ-LB, in a tackle reward league....extra points after the five tackle threshold is met.

The Jets aren't pleased with Barton and there were rumors early in FA that he was being shopped. More troubling was the Jets rotating Brad Kassell in at ILB for him later in the year. Check his game logs before and after the bye week. It's not pretty. Without a vote of confidence or a new address (both unlikely at this point) for Barton, I think Williams is the clear winner in this comparison whether or not he ends up in a better spot in Dallas.

 

[Bob Magaw]

espn article is optimistic his role will change & enable him to be more of a disruptor & playmaker by doing what he does best... blowing up plays close to LOS like an extra LB... we'll see... we hear this seemingly every year, but i'm catiously hopeful THIS TIME they really mean it...

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/stor...&id=2827064

Cowboys have simple plan for Williams

By Matt Mosley

"Not long ago, NFL safeties were considered more of a luxury than a necessity. Most teams searched for the so-called shutdown corner and tried to make do at safety.

The problem was that opposing offensive coordinators paid close attention to that trend and took full advantage of it.

The Cowboys made Oklahoma safety Roy Williams the eighth overall pick in the 2002 draft because they thought he was the most dynamic defender in college football.

Playing near the line of scrimmage, he disrupted the run and terrorized quarterbacks. Just ask any Sooners fan -- or Longhorns fan for that matter -- about "The Play," and you'll get an earful.

Because the Cowboys still had All-Pro safety Darren Woodson in 2002, they didn't dwell on the fact that Williams had never been asked to do much in pass coverage.

"That's not why we took him," said Larry Lacewell, the director of scouting at the time. "He was always going to be a down safety or basically a fancy linebacker."

The Cowboys had made the decision to copy Tampa Bay's defense, and Williams was supposed to be their John Lynch.

Williams had a strong rookie campaign, but when a back injury forced Woodson to retire three years ago, Williams lost his security blanket. Since 2004, Williams has played opposite the likes of Tony Dixon, Lynn Scott, Keith Davis and Pat Watkins. And in time, head coach Bill Parcells began changing a 4-3 scheme that featured small, speedy linebackers.

Williams was still one of the most feared players in the game because of his vicious hits, but he became an easy mark for big plays in the passing game.

"We rushed his learning curve too much," Lacewell said. "We lost Woodson and Roy wasn't getting any help back there."

That's why Williams has become new head coach Wade Phillips' first major renovation project. Even before he hired Phillips, owner-general manager Jerry Jones talked about how the club had to find a better way to utilize Williams, who was exposed on almost a weekly basis in 2006.

The Cowboys signed former Seahawks safety Ken Hamlin in free agency because they were tired of being held hostage by the position. Hamlin isn't a pure cover safety, but his knowledge of the game and experience should give Williams more freedom to make plays.

One of the best safeties to ever play for the Cowboys, Charlie Waters, thinks the arrival of Hamlin might be exactly what Williams needs. Waters and free safety Cliff Harris were a big reason for the Cowboys' success in the 1970s.

"Safeties are as good as the guy next to them," Waters said. "If you have complete trust in the other guy, you feel the freedom to make plays."

People within the organization say Williams wore down toward the end of last season, and it probably didn't help that he was carrying too much weight. Phillips told me recently that he plans to play Williams much closer to the line of scrimmage and wants to use him in several blitz packages.

The Cowboys are now hoping he can be the next Troy Polamalu, who has become one of the most versatile defenders in the league for the Steelers.

A player taken 16 spots after Williams in the 2002 draft, the Ravens' Ed Reed, has had a better career to this point. Reed and Polamalu have helped restore prestige to the position. Safeties LaRon Landry (LSU), Reggie Nelson (Florida), Michael Griffin (Texas) and Brandon Meriweather (Miami) all could be taken in the first round of the draft later this month.

And that's after a 2006 draft that saw two safeties, Oakland's Michael Huff and Buffalo's Donte Whitner, go in the first 10 picks.

Safeties used to sit out the first round entirely, but they're showing up again because so many offenses are using one-back formations designed to spread out defenses.

Basically, teams need at least one of their safeties to have the coverage skills of a cornerback and still be able to support the run.

Jones rewarded Williams with a $12 million signing bonus and long-term extension before last season, so you can't blame him for wanting to see more return on his investment.

When Williams is asked to line up 20 yards away from the line of scrimmage, he's barely more than an average player. Phillips will try to simplify the game for Williams and let him create havoc near the line of scrimmage.

Though they might not admit it publicly, coaches such as the Saints' Sean Payton built game plans around exposing Williams in coverage. Phillips and defensive coordinator Brian Stewart must find a way to limit that exposure.

The fact that Williams has only 2½ sacks over the past three seasons speaks to how out of place he's been.

Williams is at his best when he simply allows his instincts to take over, and with Phillips and Hamlin on the scene, that shouldn't be a problem."

 

[Toads]

Good stuff, Bob, Thanks for the link and the thoughs.

Williams was pushing to get into the top 60 in combined stats last year and it's tough to give up on him. His production doesn't warrant keeper status. The only idea that supports keeping him is that he'll return to the top 30 in '07.

This article supports that stretch so thanks for the finding and posting.

 

[The Sandman]

Williams was the top scoring safety in the league his rookie year when he was allowed to play in the box, and Woodson played more FS. I doubt he reaches that status again, but he could certainly reach top 10 status if he is used the same way in 07.