Cary Williams: Nobody Fears Us
Cary Williams says that the Patriots came into the joint practices with the Eagles talking trash. He claims that they were doing some “dirty things” on the field. And he didn’t want them to get away with it. Not in the Eagles’ back yard. So he got in a dust-up with rookie receiver Aaron Dobson when the teams went head-up during Tuesday’s practice, and was promptly removed from the session by head coach Chip Kelly.
“They came in there talking. They had a lot of jokes and he-hes and laughs. A lot of dirty plays going on,” said Williams, who returned from a hamstring injury Sunday. “There was a reason behind what I did. There was a reason behind the madness. At the end of the day I still have to do things the way coach wants me to do it, and I understand that, but it definitely would have been a different situation if it was Baltimore. It wouldn’t have been a fun practice for the Patriots, I’ll tell you that.”
The veteran defensive back was asked if he was attempting to establish a certain tone with this defense.
“I feel like we need the nasty, no question. I feel like we need to establish a tenacity, a hard-nosed defense, something that is to be feared when it comes out there each and every week. I think Brian Dawkins alluded to it a couple times when I spoke to him, he’s talking about, ‘Bring that fear back here.’ Right now, I don’t know if there’s anybody out there in this league that fears this defense, especially after last week. So I think we have to come together, find a way to get back to those old days when Brian Dawkins was here and strike the fear in individuals, and teams.
“I’m just used to a certain way of life, a certain way on the field,” Williams continued. “It’s just different. It’s not necessarily a good different or a bad different, it’s just a different situation. Those guys I play with, whether it be on offense, defense or special teams, those are my brothers. Every time I strap up, that’s my family. When I see guys getting blocked in the back in practice, when we get told not to retaliate, be the bigger person, it’s hard because I come from a different background. Me just relaxing and being cool and letting those people do what they do to me and me being a doormat, that’s something I’m not used to.”
Kelly is not big on extra-curriculars during practice to begin with. And he and Bill Belichick agreed that any players that were involved in a skirmish during the three days of joint practice would be tossed so the scene didn’t turn into a wrestling match.
The head coach responded to Williams’ comments on Sunday.
“If you do that in a game, you’re kicked out, so we practice like we play,” he said.”We could go get in a street-fight, but that’s not gonna help us. There’s a certain way you’re supposed to play this game and it’s between the whistles. The stuff after the whistles is not what we’re looking for. Our players knew in that game, and Bill is the same way, one of the reasons we wanted to participate against the Patriots is we knew this isn’t gonna turn into a WWE brawl cause that’s not what it is. It’s the game of football.”
For Williams, the sport requires a specific mentality.
“Throw the first punch — that’s what we always were taught,” said Williams. “With the Patriots, I felt the same way.”
Williams has allowed his emotions to get the better of him in the past. The former Raven shoved a referee during the Super Bowl this past February. He was fined $10,000 back in September for getting in a scuffle with none other than DeSean Jackson during a Ravens-Eagles matchup.
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