Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players

K Major · 02-06-2020, 08:31 AM

By John Sigler | Saints Wire

New Orleans Saints free safety Marcus Williams has a bad rap among some fans. It’s because there’s this perception that he plays small in big moments — like his whiffed tackles on deep passes in last season’s loss to the San Francisco 49ers. There have been a handful of mistakes in critical moments from the 23-year-old starter, and a vocal contingent in Saints social media circles and fan forums are determined to zero in on those few bad plays against the 2,800-plus other snaps Williams has seen since the Saints drafted him.

To hear them tell it, Williams is an unreliable player who should be traded at the first opportunity. However, the analysts at Pro Football Focus are here to sweep that misconception away. Their snap-by-snap grading proved Williams isn’t just a good player; he’s one of the NFL’s best, ranking at No. 38 on their list of the top 101 players of 2019:

This season saw Marcus Williams return to the level of play that we saw from him as a rookie, and he ended the season with an overall PFF grade of 88.9. ...

https://saintswire.usatoday.com/2020...op-101-grades/

blackangold · 02-06-2020, 12:06 PM

Sure, I get it... he is great 98% of the time. Our problem is the 2% of the time he sucks come out in absolutely backbreaking moments. I would rather have a guy that gave up a play or 5 here and there but made the big play when it really mattered.

Yes, great, he picked off Winston 20 times in a game that meant nothing, but that sure looks great for PFF stats. I would just settle for him making a tackle in the open field without grabbing a face-mask, or completely missing the tackle and hitting his own guy...

Sad part is I know Williams (friend of friends), I have met him and talked to him. He is a great kid and has a solid head on his shoulders, but man he needs to be clutch when it matters.

For the record I don't want to see him go anywhere, he is young and can develop. He needs to do that before getting a big payday though.

K Major · 02-06-2020, 12:17 PM

Just my straight forward observation on Marcus ...

He has bad situational awareness & is a poor tackler. As a SAFETY, you must be very good in this area. This is 3 years in the Saints defensive system. I've seen enough games to say his range is good. My greatest fear is that this young guy goes elsewhere and balls like M Jenkins did.

But to B&G's point, he's not clutch (see Thielan catch when he was late) when you have to be clutch.

Dennis Allen? Aaron Glenn ? ... not "coaching him up" perhaps?

Rugby Saint II · 02-06-2020, 12:48 PM

Originally Posted by K Major

Just my straight forward observation on Marcus ...

He has bad situational awareness & is a poor tackler. As a SAFETY, you must be very good in this area. This is 3 years in the Saints defensive system. I've seen enough games to say his range is good. My greatest fear is that this young guy goes elsewhere and balls like M Jenkins did.

But to B&G's point, he's not clutch (see Thielan catch when he was late) when you have to be clutch.

Dennis Allen? Aaron Glenn ? ... not "coaching him up" perhaps?

I'm just seriously disappointed in his overall play. I don't think he's a very good center fielder and is almost always late to the play where he misses the tackle.

CHA_CHING · 02-07-2020, 07:13 AM

Originally Posted by blackangold

Sure, I get it... he is great 98% of the time. Our problem is the 2% of the time he sucks come out in absolutely backbreaking moments. I would rather have a guy that gave up a play or 5 here and there but made the big play when it really mattered.

Yes, great, he picked off Winston 20 times in a game that meant nothing, but that sure looks great for PFF stats. I would just settle for him making a tackle in the open field without grabbing a face-mask, or completely missing the tackle and hitting his own guy...

Sad part is I know Williams (friend of friends), I have met him and talked to him. He is a great kid and has a solid head on his shoulders, but man he needs to be clutch when it matters.

For the record I don't want to see him go anywhere, he is young and can develop. He needs to do that before getting a big payday though.

I agree with this, except I'd say it's 50% of the time. He's inconsistent and gets burned when we play decent teams. See the 49ers when they came in and shredded our whole secondary.

CHA_CHING · 02-07-2020, 07:16 AM

Originally Posted by K Major

Just my straight forward observation on Marcus ...

He has bad situational awareness & is a poor tackler. As a SAFETY, you must be very good in this area. This is 3 years in the Saints defensive system. I've seen enough games to say his range is good. My greatest fear is that this young guy goes elsewhere and balls like M Jenkins did.

But to B&G's point, he's not clutch (see Thielan catch when he was late) when you have to be clutch.

Dennis Allen? Aaron Glenn ? ... not "coaching him up" perhaps?

Allen needs to be fired. I cannot believe Saints fans still defend him. It's why I say repeatedly - the non-call and other bad calls or non-calls are just a shiny object waved in front of your face. The biggest issue is the guy calling the defense that always craps themselves in crunch time. Payton also deserves criticism for some of his poor game planning, and especially Brees for his poor play in the playoffs the last 3 years.

Spags has 2 rings now. If anyone wants to reply to that with "but he coached the worst defense ever!", and so did Allen! The 2015 Saints broke records of the 2012 team. The 2016 defense gave up more pass TDs than the 2012 team.

We have the talent, we just have a mediocre coach on defense. If they had a better coach, the potential is there for them to be dominant. We saw that in 2018 and in brief parts of 2017 and 2019.

WillMacKenzie · 02-07-2020, 10:05 AM

Fake news.

RefsRobbedUs · 02-07-2020, 12:15 PM

PFF is not the gospel. You have guys who would never be hired by an NFL team doing 'player grades'

AsylumGuido · 02-07-2020, 12:47 PM

Originally Posted by RefsRobbedUs

PFF is not the gospel. You have guys who would never be hired by an NFL team doing 'player grades'

I believe the grading in done by persons who are experts in each of the positions. I know former NFL QB Bruce Gradkowski is one of the QB graders.

WillMacKenzie · 02-07-2020, 01:13 PM

The great Bruce Gradkowski?

02-06-2020, 08:31 AM	#1
K Major Site Donor 2019 Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Bedford, TX Posts: 24,622 Blog Entries: 3	Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players By John Sigler \| Saints Wire New Orleans Saints free safety Marcus Williams has a bad rap among some fans. It’s because there’s this perception that he plays small in big moments — like his whiffed tackles on deep passes in last season’s loss to the San Francisco 49ers. There have been a handful of mistakes in critical moments from the 23-year-old starter, and a vocal contingent in Saints social media circles and fan forums are determined to zero in on those few bad plays against the 2,800-plus other snaps Williams has seen since the Saints drafted him. To hear them tell it, Williams is an unreliable player who should be traded at the first opportunity. However, the analysts at Pro Football Focus are here to sweep that misconception away. Their snap-by-snap grading proved Williams isn’t just a good player; he’s one of the NFL’s best, ranking at No. 38 on their list of the top 101 players of 2019: This season saw Marcus Williams return to the level of play that we saw from him as a rookie, and he ended the season with an overall PFF grade of 88.9. ... https://saintswire.usatoday.com/2020...op-101-grades/ jeanpierre likes this.

02-06-2020, 12:06 PM	#2
blackangold 1000 Posts + Join Date: Aug 2011 Posts: 3,422	Re: Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players Sure, I get it... he is great 98% of the time. Our problem is the 2% of the time he sucks come out in absolutely backbreaking moments. I would rather have a guy that gave up a play or 5 here and there but made the big play when it really mattered. Yes, great, he picked off Winston 20 times in a game that meant nothing, but that sure looks great for PFF stats. I would just settle for him making a tackle in the open field without grabbing a face-mask, or completely missing the tackle and hitting his own guy... Sad part is I know Williams (friend of friends), I have met him and talked to him. He is a great kid and has a solid head on his shoulders, but man he needs to be clutch when it matters. For the record I don't want to see him go anywhere, he is young and can develop. He needs to do that before getting a big payday though. Papa Voodoo, SmashMouth, K Major and 1 others like this.
	The Saints are 0-42 when running the ball less than 15 times in a game.

02-06-2020, 12:17 PM	#3
K Major Site Donor 2019 Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Bedford, TX Posts: 24,622 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players Just my straight forward observation on Marcus ... He has bad situational awareness & is a poor tackler. As a SAFETY, you must be very good in this area. This is 3 years in the Saints defensive system. I've seen enough games to say his range is good. My greatest fear is that this young guy goes elsewhere and balls like M Jenkins did. But to B&G's point, he's not clutch (see Thielan catch when he was late) when you have to be clutch. Dennis Allen? Aaron Glenn ? ... not "coaching him up" perhaps? SmashMouth, Rugby Saint II and CHA_CHING like this.

02-06-2020, 12:48 PM	#4
Rugby Saint II Bounty Money $$$ Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 5800 Airline Dr. Metairie, LA. Posts: 24,073	Re: Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players Originally Posted by K Major Just my straight forward observation on Marcus ... He has bad situational awareness & is a poor tackler. As a SAFETY, you must be very good in this area. This is 3 years in the Saints defensive system. I've seen enough games to say his range is good. My greatest fear is that this young guy goes elsewhere and balls like M Jenkins did. But to B&G's point, he's not clutch (see Thielan catch when he was late) when you have to be clutch. Dennis Allen? Aaron Glenn ? ... not "coaching him up" perhaps? I'm just seriously disappointed in his overall play. I don't think he's a very good center fielder and is almost always late to the play where he misses the tackle.

02-07-2020, 07:13 AM	#5
CHA_CHING 1000 Posts + Join Date: Jan 2019 Location: Mobile, AL Posts: 1,159	Re: Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players Originally Posted by blackangold Sure, I get it... he is great 98% of the time. Our problem is the 2% of the time he sucks come out in absolutely backbreaking moments. I would rather have a guy that gave up a play or 5 here and there but made the big play when it really mattered. Yes, great, he picked off Winston 20 times in a game that meant nothing, but that sure looks great for PFF stats. I would just settle for him making a tackle in the open field without grabbing a face-mask, or completely missing the tackle and hitting his own guy... Sad part is I know Williams (friend of friends), I have met him and talked to him. He is a great kid and has a solid head on his shoulders, but man he needs to be clutch when it matters. For the record I don't want to see him go anywhere, he is young and can develop. He needs to do that before getting a big payday though. I agree with this, except I'd say it's 50% of the time. He's inconsistent and gets burned when we play decent teams. See the 49ers when they came in and shredded our whole secondary.

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02-07-2020, 07:16 AM	#6
CHA_CHING 1000 Posts + Join Date: Jan 2019 Location: Mobile, AL Posts: 1,159	Re: Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players Originally Posted by K Major Just my straight forward observation on Marcus ... He has bad situational awareness & is a poor tackler. As a SAFETY, you must be very good in this area. This is 3 years in the Saints defensive system. I've seen enough games to say his range is good. My greatest fear is that this young guy goes elsewhere and balls like M Jenkins did. But to B&G's point, he's not clutch (see Thielan catch when he was late) when you have to be clutch. Dennis Allen? Aaron Glenn ? ... not "coaching him up" perhaps? Allen needs to be fired. I cannot believe Saints fans still defend him. It's why I say repeatedly - the non-call and other bad calls or non-calls are just a shiny object waved in front of your face. The biggest issue is the guy calling the defense that always craps themselves in crunch time. Payton also deserves criticism for some of his poor game planning, and especially Brees for his poor play in the playoffs the last 3 years. Spags has 2 rings now. If anyone wants to reply to that with "but he coached the worst defense ever!", and so did Allen! The 2015 Saints broke records of the 2012 team. The 2016 defense gave up more pass TDs than the 2012 team. We have the talent, we just have a mediocre coach on defense. If they had a better coach, the potential is there for them to be dominant. We saw that in 2018 and in brief parts of 2017 and 2019. Rugby Saint II and K Major like this.

02-07-2020, 10:05 AM	#7
WillMacKenzie 1000 Posts + Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 1,627	Re: Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players Fake news. RefsRobbedUs likes this.

02-07-2020, 12:15 PM	#8
RefsRobbedUs 500th Post Join Date: Jan 2019 Posts: 659	Re: Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players PFF is not the gospel. You have guys who would never be hired by an NFL team doing 'player grades'
RefsRobbedUs 500th Post Join Date: Jan 2019 Posts: 659

02-07-2020, 12:47 PM	#9
AsylumGuido 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Bossier City, LA Posts: 26,274	Re: Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players Originally Posted by RefsRobbedUs PFF is not the gospel. You have guys who would never be hired by an NFL team doing 'player grades' I believe the grading in done by persons who are experts in each of the positions. I know former NFL QB Bruce Gradkowski is one of the QB graders.

02-07-2020, 01:13 PM	#10
WillMacKenzie 1000 Posts + Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 1,627	Re: Bounce-back third year earns Marcus Williams a spot among top 40 NFL players The great Bruce Gradkowski?

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