Mike Zimmer Gives Gut-Wrenching Comments on Sam Williams Injury
The absolute worst part of NFL training camp is the injuries. It's exciting to see teams back out on the field having real practices, but that excitement always comes with a layer of fear around what kind of preseason disasters are lurking.
The Cowboys got terrible news when Sam Williams suffered a devastating knee injury this weekend, which has already left him ruled out for the entire season.
Cowboys defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer spoke about Williams' injury, and the comments are really tough.
Cowboys DC Mike Zimmer on @dfwticket on losing DE Sam Williams (knee): “We had big plans for him. He was going to play an awful lot, probably I’m guessing, 70-75 percent of the time. … We’ll just have to move some chess pieces around and try to figure out other ways to do… https://t.co/cF2uNtHu6X
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) July 29, 2024
Zimmer revealed that the plans were for Williams to have a huge role in the Cowboys' defense this year – projecting that he would have played 70 to 75% of the snaps. This is for a role player whose previous career high was just 28% in 2023.
The new DC clearly loved what he's seen from Williams, and the 2024 season had all the makings of a breakout year for the Cowboys' 2022 second-round pick.
By all accounts, Williams has done everything right since being drafted out of Ole Miss. He's quietly accepted a rotational role despite being a high draft pick ,and he's been terrific when he is called upon, having already racked up 8.5 career sacks on just 357 pass-rush snaps (per PFF). He also follows through on whatever is asked from him in the special teams department, having played 59% (2022) and 68% (2023) of the team's special teams snaps.
Cowboys fans will of course be hoping that this injury only sets his breakout back by a season, rather than putting a halt to it altogether. But returning from an injury this devastating is not easy, and opportunities in the NFL can be short lived. Sometimes an opportunity like Williams had in 2024 doesn't present itself again.
As for who is going to fill in for Williams' snaps, that's going to be interesting. The Cowboys' defensive front is relatively deep, which means second-round pick Marshawn Kneeland was likely going to have a hard time finding the field. Now he could suddenly be forced into a much bigger role.
Zimmer is also a great defensive mind, and Cowboys fans can feel good that when all is said and done he will have figured out the right personnel combination to solidify this front seven in a way that we didn't see in the final year of Dan Quinn's tenure.
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