Tag: Terrell Williams

Detroit Lions defensive line coach Terrell Williams communicates with players during the second half against Tennessee Titans at Ford Field in Detroit on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024.

Patriots DC Terrell Williams diagnosed with prostate cancer

Posted on | by Field Level Media

New England Patriots defensive coordinator Terrell Williams has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, head coach Mike Vrabel confirmed Friday.

Vrabel said Williams, 51, has begun treatment and has been meeting with specialists.

“You know how much Terrell means to me personally and to the people on this football team,” Vrabel said. “So we want to send our regards publicly and let everybody know that’s what he’s dealing with … he’s been through a lot and we care about him.”

When Vrabel was head coach of the Tennessee Titans from 2018-23, Williams was his defensive line coach. He added assistant head coach to his title in 2023.

Williams spent the 2024 season as the defensive line coach and run game coordinator with the Detroit Lions.

Williams was dealing with unspecified health issues during the offseason and has been away from the Patriots since Week 1, with inside linebackers coach Zak Kuhr calling the defensive plays in his absence.

“T is always a big part of what we do,” Kuhr said, per MassLive.com. “I just want him to know that we’re always thinking about him. (My wife) Jenny and I are always praying for him each and every day. But us as a staff, us as a defense, he has a big impact and he’s a big part of that.”

Williams has been coaching defensive lines in college and the pros since 1998, including stints with the then-Oakland Raiders (2012-14) and Miami Dolphins (2015-17).

–Field Level Media

Detroit Lions defensive line coach Terrell Williams watches a play against San Francisco 49ers during the second half at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. on Monday, Dec. 30, 2024.

Patriots DC Terrell Williams out with ‘medical condition’

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The New England Patriots are without defensive coordinator Terrell Williams at rookie minicamp after he stepped away from the team due to a “medical condition”, head coach Mike Vrabel told reporters Friday.

Vrabel did not share any specifics on what health issue Williams, 50, is dealing with or when he is expected to return to the team in-person. ESPN reported Friday that Williams has been absent from the team for approximately a month.

Vrabel said Williams has been in touch with players and the coaching staff via Zoom, and Williams is expected to speak to reporters via Zoom later Friday.

“I’ve been in constant communication with him daily,” said Vrabel, who would not put a timeline on Williams’ return. “Terrell’s eager to get back, and we’re excited to get him back.”

Williams is in his first season as defensive coordinator with the Patriots, which also is Vrabel’s first season at the helm. He was on Vrabel’s staff with the Tennessee Titans from 2018-23, finishing that tenure as the assistant head coach and defensive line coach. Williams served as defensive line coach/run game coordinator for the Detroit Lions last season.

Williams coached the defensive line for the Miami Dolphins (2015-17) and then-Oakland Raiders (2012-14) after college stints as an assistant at Texas A&M, Purdue, Akron and other schools.

In his absence, Williams’ responsibilities are being handled by inside linebackers coach Zak Kuhr, who was a New York Giants defensive assistant last season. Kuhr also spent time with Vrabel in various positions with the Titans from 2020-23.

“Zak has great knowledge of what we’ve done in the past, with me and this system, and with Terrell,” Vrabel said.

–Field Level Media

Detroit Lions defensive line coach Terrell Williams watches a play against San Francisco 49ers during the second half at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. on Monday, Dec. 30, 2024.

Patriots hire Josh McDaniels as OC, Terrell Williams as DC

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The New England Patriots announced Wednesday that Josh McDaniels has returned for a third stint as the team’s offensive coordinator.

The Patriots also announced Terrell Williams will be the team’s defensive coordinator and Jeremy Springer will serve as the special teams coordinator.

McDaniels, 48, will take over an offense quarterbacked by rising sophomore Drake Maye on new coach Mike Vrabel’s first staff in Foxborough, Mass.

McDaniels spent 2001-08 and 2012-21 on the Patriots’ staff in a variety of roles, first rising to the offensive coordinator post in 2006. He was a part of all six Super Bowl titles of the Bill Belichick era.

McDaniels also is known for a pair of failed stints as a head coach. He was fired by the Denver Broncos 12 games into his second season with the team in 2010. History repeated itself eight games into his second season leading the Las Vegas Raiders in 2023.

Williams, 50, was on Vrabel’s staff with the Tennessee Titans from 2018-23, finishing that tenure as the assistant head coach and defensive line coach.

He is the latest member of Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell’s staff to depart this week, with offensive coordinator Ben Johnson named head coach of the Chicago Bears on Tuesday. Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn will be named the head coach of the New York Jets, multiple media outlets reported on Wednesday.

Williams coached the defensive line for the Miami Dolphins (2015-17) and then-Oakland Raiders (2012-14) after stints as an assistant at Texas A&M, Purdue, Akron and other schools.

Springer, 35, joined the Patriots last season after spending two years (2022-23) as a special teams assistant with the Los Angeles Rams.

–Field Level Media

Tennessee Titans defensive line coach Terrell Williams walks with Shakel Brown, center, and Jayden Peevy, right, before starting the next drill during an NFL football training camp practice Tuesday, August 8, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn. Williams will be the Titans head coach for the preseason opener against the Chicago Bears.

Titans assistant Terrell Williams begins HC role on Thursday

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The Tennessee Titans’ NFL exhibition opener on Saturday at the Chicago Bears will have extra meaning for Terrell Williams.

That’s because the Titans’ defensive line coach will be acting head coach in place of Mike Vrabel, who earlier this week told Williams of his new duties for the weekend.

“I think Mike Vrabel deserves a lot of credit,” Williams said Thursday. “He deserves a lot of credit, not just for doing this for me, but around the league, hopefully, more coaches will give assistant coaches opportunities to do this.

“There’s nothing better than getting the experience.”

Williams, 49, has been with the Titans since 2018 as defensive line coach, and this season was promoted to assistant head coach.

Vrabel stepped aside Thursday in having Williams answer questions from the media after practice, and the responsibilities will continue from the team meeting Thursday night, through Friday’s activities and Saturday’s game and postgame press conference.

Defensive assistant Clinton McMillan will coach the defensive line while Williams handles operational duties and Vrabel will be available to help the team prepare and advise Williams as needed.

“I definitely don’t have butterflies, trust me,” Williams said. “I am excited for the football team. … If I have any butterflies, it is not for me, it is because I want to see how some of these guys who haven’t played in a pro football game, I’ll be more concerned about them. I’ll be fine.”

Williams has been a coach for 26 seasons at the college and NFL levels, with stops including Texas A&M and Purdue, and as an intern through the NFL’s minority coaching program in 1999 with the Jacksonville Jaguars and later with the Dallas Cowboys and Seattle Seahawks.

He was a defensive line coach for the then-Oakland Raiders (2012-14) and Miami Dolphins (2015-17) before coming to Tennessee.

Williams said Thursday that he would like to be a head coach in the future.

“I have been through a lot in my life — it takes a lot to overwhelm me,” Williams said. “You just roll with the punches. Vrabes has kind of gone over what game day is going to be like — he’s gone over everything that I need to be prepared for. I’m sure some things are going to come up … but as these things come up, you figure it out. And that is why you have good coaches around you, because you can’t do everything. We’ll figure it out.

“I am just excited about the opportunity.”

–Field Level Media

Tennessee Titans defensive end Jurrell Casey (99) pushes past defensive line coach Terrell Williams during practice at Saint Thomas Sports Park Saturday, Aug. 10, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Nas Titans 8 10 Observations 006

Mike Vrabel to cede coaching reins in first preseason game

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel said Monday that he plans to cede coaching duties to assistant head coach Terrell Williams for the team’s first preseason game.

Williams, also the defensive line coach, will begin his head coaching role on Friday as the Titans prepare to play the Bears. The game is Saturday afternoon in Chicago.

“I think this is a great opportunity for him and for us, everybody involved,” Vrabel said Monday.

Defensive assistant Clinton McMillan will handle defensive line duties for Williams in the game.

“We’ll have a lot of conversations between now and Friday, but just handling things with the roster and discussing those things with the assistant coaches and how we want to play the game and let him make those decisions in the game,” Vrabel said. “Well deserved.”

Vrabel will act as assistant coach to Williams.

Williams is in his sixth season with the Titans but first as assistant head coach. He’s entering his 12th season as a coach in the NFL, none as a head coach.

–Field Level Media