Despite having a comfortable spot with the Tennessee Titans, DL coach Terrell Williams couldn’t pass on the chance to re-join Dan Campbell with the Detroit Lions.
It’s no secret that Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell has been a huge fan of Terrell Williams, the team’s new defensive line coach. On Tuesday at the NFL Combine, Campbell called Williams the best defensive line coach in the entire NFL and someone who will be a huge benefit to Detroit’s young defensive line.
It turns out the feeling is very much mutual. Despite the regime change within the Tennessee Titans, Williams had the opportunity to keep his job there—where he had established a base for the past six years and was well-respected within the organization. But when Campbell came calling this offseason, Williams couldn’t pass on the chance to join him, as he explained to a small group of Detroit reporters on Tuesday.
“I’m thankful to the Tennessee Titans for allowing me to get out of my contract because that was a tough conversation to have,” Williams said, per MLive. “They were great to me over the last six years, and I had planned on moving forward with them. But the opportunity to get with Dan and Brad (Holmes), AG (Aaron Glenn), those guys, and work for this organization.”
Williams has a shared history with both Campbell and Holmes. He coached together with Campbell during Campbell’s short run as interim head coach of the Miami Dolphins, and he was actually Holmes’ positional coach at North Carolina A&T back during the Lions general manager’s playing days.
“He was a great coach in terms of holding us accountable, and so you built that trust,” Holmes said. “When we didn’t do the right thing, he held us accountable. And we didn’t like it all the time, but he’s an excellent teacher. I’m not surprised at the success he’s had.”
That level of trust clearly goes both ways because Williams mentioned trust as a big reason he was comfortable making the jump to Detroit.
“I trust Dan, and I trust Brad, and they trust me,” Williams said. “You can ask them, I don’t want to speak for them, but that’s what’s important to me. If I can trust you, then we can have tough conversations and those things, and that’s important to me. Dan and I have talked for years about having an opportunity to work together, and when this opportunity came, it was an easy decision for me.”
Of course, there were some practical reasons for Williams taking the job, too. His wife has family in Detroit, and his son will have plenty of opportunities to play hockey.
“The hockey part was bigger than you think,” Williams said. “It was a huge part of me coming here to Detroit.”
If you want to read more about Williams, his philosophy, and how being vulnerable has helped him be a better coach, check out Kyle Meinke’s recap of Williams’ conversation with reporters from Tuesday.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login