Cincinnati Bengals safety Shawn Williams heads into a great unknown next season.
Williams watched from afar during a pandemic as his team let go of veterans like Dre Kirkpatrick and brought in new starters at every level of the defense.
That potentially includes safety Vonn Bell, a late luxury addition. And while nobody will say Bell is instantly a starter over Williams, we’re talking about a 25-year-old playmaker in the middle of his prime.
Williams has taken his usual optimistic slant though and is ready see how it all shakes out, per Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com:
“I don’t know how that plays out. I don’t even think they know right now because they haven’t really seen Vonn do anything and that’s no knock on Vonn. I just think they want to see everybody together on the field first. I’m confident they’ll figure how to use him and use me and everybody is going to be happy.”
Though he does go on to admit it’d be tough for him to stick on the sidelines given his well-earned roster status over the years:
“But it has to work hand-in-hand if this thing is going to work. It would kind of be hard, having your leader, having your alpha male for your defense, not only on your defense but on your team, not doing anything productive.”
Williams has been an absolute warrior for the Bengals for a long time and toughed it out through an injury last year despite the 2-14 record. His comments are standard fare as far as he’s concerned — which aligns with the idea he’s another veteran all-in on Zac Taylor’s current approach.
No matter where Williams ends up, he sounds like a guy once again ready to lead by example.
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