When the Dallas Cowboys shockingly traded Micah Parsons before the start of the regular season, they were hoping that a couple of players would step up and fill the void left by the superstar pass rusher.
In particular, the Cowboys' second-round draft picks of Marshawn Kneeland and Sam Williams. Neither guy has lived up to their draft standing, but Kneeland gets some grace as it's only his second year.
However, the clock is ticking on Williams, who hasn’t made a significant impact whatsoever on this defense. And in fact, Williams has been outplayed by veterans like James Houston and Jadeveon Clowney, who haven’t been with the team as long.
Things came to a head with Williams on Sunday afternoon, as Cowboys fans were not pleased with his performance in the team’s 44-24 loss to the Denver Broncos.
Any Hope for Cowboys' Sam Williams Is Officially Lost After Week 8
The 26-year-old defensive lineman played a season-low 17 defensive snaps in Sunday’s game, and didn’t have much to show for it. Williams produced one combined tackle and a tackle for loss, which won’t get it done.
During the game, Marcus Mosher of Locked on Cowboys highlighted how Williams got sealed by a wide receiver, which is not great. Meanwhile, Tom Downey on X pointed out that the veteran pass rusher can’t keep contain, which is one of the biggest things a defensive lineman must do outside of actually getting a sack.
Once a defensive lineman loses contain, bad things happen, such as a QB scrambling out of the pocket or a running back picking up extra yards. It’s the little things Williams isn’t executing on right now.
And to no one’s surprise, Williams’ PFF grades from Sunday reflect these ongoing issues. The former second-round pick had an ugly 41.6 overall defensive grade, along with a disappointing pass rush grade (53.2). But if there was a silver lining, Williams had a 64.2 pass rush grade, which was ranked third-best among Dallas’ defenders.
That said, Williams’ pass rush grade shouldn’t stop the Cowboys from giving him fewer snaps on defense. In Week 7 against the Washington Commanders, the veteran defender had a 37.2 overall defensive grade and a bunch of zeroes in the box score.
If the Cowboys’ defense didn’t give up 30-plus points a game, you would extend Williams some grace as he missed all of last season with a torn ACL and MCL. However, his struggles are part of Dallas’ defensive woes. Since he’s scheduled to become a free agent in the offseason, Dallas could part ways with Williams ahead of the trade deadline to get some type of value in return.
But if Dallas doesn’t want to go that route, then the next best step is to give his snaps to other guys on the defensive line, who will actually make an impact. Cowboys fans are tired of Williams and watching this defensive unit play bad football.