Ask the Experts

How high will Oklahoma S Roy Williams be picked?

By the editors of Pro Football Weekly
April 15, 2002

Holbrook: I really believe the Bills will be thrilled to take Oklahoma playmaker extraordinaire Roy Williams with the fourth pick. Williams has everything head coach Gregg Williams wants in a safety for his defense — he’s smart and athletic, has great instincts and is a hard hitter. Blaine Bishop was the foundation of Gregg Williams’ great defenses in Tennessee, and I think Roy Williams can be better than Bishop. Adding Roy Williams would take the Bills’ defense up a notch and allow Gregg Williams to become more aggressive in his defensive play-calling.

Reynolds: It all depends on the movement at the top. For example, if Cincinnati would trade to move ahead of Buffalo at No. 3 to grab QB Joey Harrington, the pecking order for teams to follow may be altered because the impact players who aren’t expected to be available after the top five picks very well may be. As the draft order stands now, I think Minnesota will reel in Roy Williams at No. 7. Having lost SS Robert Griffith to the Browns — as well as LB Kailee Wong to Houston — in free agency, first-year head coach Mike Tice has a need for playmakers on that side of the football. Williams can play the run, and with 4.5 speed he covers a lot of ground. Tice is doing all he can to put capable bodies in the front seven, having increased the depth on the defensive line through free agency. His needs now are a No. 2 receiver opposite Randy Moss and defense. With the LB crop weak — only Northwestern LB Napoleon Harris is a lock to be picked in Round One — Tice must address a flimsy secondary. CB Quentin Jammer is expected to be gone, and Williams is the next home-run hitter who resides in the secondary. Williams is a safe pick because of his playmaking prowess, and the Vikings can’t afford to swing and miss on a "potential power/potential bust" like Tennessee DT Albert Haynesworth.

Nawrocki: I would be surprised to see Williams fall past the 10th selection and think he could go as high as third. Six of the first 10 teams in the draft — the Panthers, Lions, Bills, Cowboys, Vikings and Bengals — could use help in the secondary. Williams is a big-time playmaker with great instincts who is fearless on the field. His Combine numbers were not overly impressive, and he may fall because of his weak upper-body strength — he benched 225 pounds the fewest times (13) of any strong safety at the Combine. But, he was one-hundredth of a second from being the fastest in the 40-yard dash (4.51) while packing the most weight at 219 pounds. He can be a dominating linebacker in the right system. Safeties have not traditionally been selected high in the draft, but Williams is a difference-maker who will make an immediate impact in the NFL.

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