Despite the fact that the Rams have three former NFL defensive coordinators on the coaching staff, the 27-year-old son of their exiled defensive coordinator continue to inch toward possibly taking the reins of the defense.
As Peter King of SI.com explains it in his most recent Monday Morning Quarterback column, linebackers coach Blake Williams was calling the defensive plays during King’s visit to the team’s practice.
King says that coach Jeff Fisher has yet to decide who’ll call the plays during regular-season games, but giving Blake Williams the opportunity during practice undoubtedly constitutes a test drive for the possibility of doing it during games.
Even more intriguing is the fact that the Rams are shielding Blake Williams from the media; even King couldn’t get an audience with him.
The circumstances will serve onto the intensify speculation that father and son will secretly be working together to come up with game plans and make adjustments and otherwise strategize about football. It’s a theory that has been making the rounds for several months, especially since the NFL apparently hasn’t placed any restrictions on the ability of father and son to communicate, other than to insist that they talk no football.
“He is not permitted to discuss NFL or Rams-related business with his son,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said via email Monday morning regarding Gregg Williams, who is suspended indefinitely and at least for a full year. But Aiello would go no farther regarding constraints on the duration of phone calls or meetings or whether the situation will be enforced via anything more than the honor system.
“We consider any other aspects of this confidential,” Aiello said.
None of this means there will be violations of the terms of Williams’ suspension. But one basic reality about the honor system is that it’s only slightly more effective than the rhythm method.
Though there’s a chance that Gregg Williams truly has undergone some sort of epiphany, this is the “kill the head” guy, who lied to the league about the existence of a pay-for-performance/bounty system and brazenly continued to use it. Unless the meetings and conversations between Gregg and Blake Williams will be electronically monitored, it’s hardly a stretch to think that Gregg will be inclined to sprain the limits of his suspension.
That said, the Rams may not need Gregg Williams’ input. By all indications, Blake Williams is the real deal.