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The St. Louis Rams made their re-hiring of defensive coordinator Gregg Williams official on Wednesday. The Rams have been linked to Williams since late January. News of the hiring first broke on Jan. 29, when the team let Tim Walton go after one year. Reports that the team would bring in Williams to replace him surfaced soon after.
"As I've stated before, I believe Gregg is an outstanding football coach and is capable of taking our defense to the next level," Jeff Fisher said in a statement released by the team.
The Rams hired Williams in 2012, and then let him go because of the bounty scandal that shook the league and got Williams suspended. In 2013, Williams went to the Titans to help coach the defense. The Rams hired Tim Walton after they fired Blake Williams, who was Gregg's son. It's doubtful that Blake returns because he got on the bad side of the staff when he was fired.
Williams returning is an interesting move for the Rams. It's a move that could help the Rams defense join the league's elite units. The Rams are built to run Williams' defense which focuses on third down blitzes and dropping men back in coverage, an aggressive scheme that should benefit the Rams.
"I am excited about coaching this defense," said Williams. "I would like to thank Jeff Fisher and the Rams organization for this opportunity and I am looking forward to getting to work and helping our defense become one of the best in football."
If you want to know more about Williams' style of defense and what he expects, writer Matt Bowen, who played under Williams, wrote an article about the coach (it is a great article). Below is a quote from the article.
I would have run through a wall for this guy. And I probably still would today if he showed up at my front door.
His ability to get the most out of his players is second to none, and I believe we are seeing that right now in Tennessee. This isn’t a unit stacked with Pro Bowl talent, but they are playing together at a Pro Bowl level.
That’s buying into a certain style of football. It’s an attitude than comes from the top. And it’s a beautiful thing when everyone is on board.
Williams sounds like an upgrade over Walton and it should show up on the field. With Williams, it's doubtful that the Rams will play six yards back with their corners on third-and-two. The Rams have the pieces for the defense to finish in the top 10, and it will be interesting to see who the Rams draft in May to add help for Williams' defense. I wouldn't be surprised to see another pass rusher and a secondary player that can hold good coverage and blitz well.
Rams make it official with Gregg Williams as defensive coordinator. Press conference is Thursday morning.
— Nick Wagoner (@nwagoner) February 12, 2014
