Tag: Brandon Williams

Brandon Williams reveals the message from Mick Cronin

Brandon Williams just wants to win.

The UCLA Bruins have a lot of new faces, but one returning piece is Brandon Williams.

He was a freshman in 2023-2024, but he decided to stay with UCLA even despite a large arrival of talented players via the transfer portal.

Brandon Williams gave a short message to Mick Cronin on his decision to stay in Westwood, per Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times.

“His meeting was, ‘I hate to lose, coach. I know you’ve got to get some players,’” Cronin recalled. “‘Let me know if I can help, but I love you guys, this is where I’m supposed to be and I trust you, I trust the coaches, go get some players so we can win. I ain’t going anywhere.’”

Williams played in 32 games last season, averaging just 3.1 PPG with 2.2 rebounds in limited minutes.

It might be a similar usage for Williams, but as he said, he hates to lose.

11 veteran free agents the Rams should consider signing following the 2023 NFL draft

The 2023 NFL draft has passed and the Rams could still sign these veterans to fill the remaining holes on their roster.

The 2023 NFL draft is now behind us, with the Los Angeles Rams making 14 total selections in the seven rounds. After the draft was completed, the Rams have also proceeded to sign 26 undrafted rookies to deals.

Besides adding first-year players via the draft, the Rams will likely use free agency to shape the rest of their roster this offseason. With the draft passing by, teams in the NFL can now sign veterans without it affecting their compensatory pick status.

So with the Rams having an opportunity to choose from the remaining free agents, here are 11 veterans they should consider signing this offseason to fill the rest of the holes on the roster.

NFL draft history: Every player selected with the 94th overall pick since 2000

We’re looking at every prospect selected with the 94th overall pick since the 2000 NFL Draft and the Philadelphia Eagles’ chances of landing an impact player.

The Eagles need impact players on both sides of the ball, and with two first-round picks in this month’s draft, Howie Roseman will have another opportunity to add depth to a Super Bowl-caliber roster.

With so much parity in college football now, third-round picks offer an opportunity to land a dynamic player, but the list of No. 94 overall picks has left much to be desired.

With the NFL draft fast approaching, we’re looking at every player selected with the 94th pick since 2000.

Steve Spagnuolo, Joe Cullen pleased with debut of Chiefs DT Brandon Williams

Steve Spagnuolo and Joe Cullen both liked what they saw from new #Chiefs DT Brandon Williams in Week 14.

The Kansas City Chiefs saw veteran DT Brandon Williams play his first snaps for the team in Week 14 against the Denver Broncos.

Williams managed 15 snaps on defense in his debut performance, with several of those snaps actually coming on passing downs. The 6-1 and 336-pound nose tackle wasted no time getting active with his new team, recording one tackle, a half-sack and two quarterback hits on Broncos QB Russell Wilson. He also managed some impressive snaps in the team’s goal-line defensive packages.

Asked about what he saw from Williams in his debut, Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo likened the performance to Baker Mayfield’s comeback win over the Las Vegas Raiders on “Thursday Night Football.”

“Yeah! I tell you, (I was) really impressed with – it’s kind of like (Rams QB) Baker Mayfield, right (laughter)? I mean Brandon was only here three days or whatever and he did an admirable job,” Spagnuolo explained. “What he still can do as a D-linemen is knock somebody back. He really helped us on the goal line. You know we had the two or three goal-line snaps. I think they took a penalty and went back and then we were out of goal-line defense, but he helped us there. I was really impressed with how he picked it up. A true pro, you know, veteran.”

The nine-year NFL veteran managed to get accustomed to the playbook and acclimated quickly. Having played for both Spagnuolo and defensive line coach Joe Cullen in Baltimore during his career allowed for some carryover in the terminology and playbook.

“Yeah, you know Brandon (Williams) did a great job for coming in and he got familiar with the system, and he knows (Defensive Coordinator) Coach (Steve Spagnuolo) Spags,” Cullen said. “There’s some carryover but he did, he went in there and gave them some really good snaps. He was physical, did a great job down on the goal line. We brought him here to knock the run out, but he was in on a half a sack, so he did some good things, and we just know we want him to continue to get better.”

In Week 15 against the Houston Texans, you can expect to see even more of Williams on the field. He’ll continue to get acclimated and get his football-playing legs under him, but he also should earn more opportunities with Derrick Nnadi popping up on the injury report on Thursday.

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Chiefs promote DT Brandon Williams to 53-man roster from practice squad

The #Chiefs officially promoted DT Brandon Williams to the 53-man roster and re-signed C Austin Reiter on the practice squad.

The Kansas City Chiefs officially filled their vacant spot on the 53-man roster on Thursday.

The team had a free spot after releasing DT Taylor Stallworth from the 53-man roster. As expected, they’ve signed DT Brandon Williams from their practice squad to fill that vacancy. A former third-round draft pick out of Missouri Southern in the 2013 NFL draft, Williams spent the past nine seasons with the Ravens. He spent four of those seasons (2016-2020) with Chiefs DL coach Joe Cullen as his position coach. They’re now reunited in Kansas City.

The 6-1 and 336-pound nose tackle started 114 games in Baltimore, recording 323 total tackles, 33 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries, 11 passes batted and a defensive touchdown. He figures in as a part of the defensive tackle rotation, primarily on run-stopping downs.

What exactly does Williams bring to the team and how much action will he get in Week 14 against the Broncos? Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo weighed in.

“Brandon (Williams) brings a lot of energy,” Spagnuolo said. “Him and Joe (Cullen) know each other really well from their Baltimore years. I was actually with Brandon his rookie year in Baltimore. I knew him as a rookie, but they change as they go. I’ve had other guys where I’ve had them young and other guys where the years go by and then I’m with them again. They’re just different people. Look, he’s a big and strong guy. We’ll see where he’s at. It has only been two days and yesterday we didn’t even have helmets on. It’s going to take a little while to sift through.

The Chiefs also brought back former starting C Austin Reiter on the practice squad. Reiter was released from the practice squad just last week to make room for the trio of Williams, Melvin Gordon and Bryan Edwards.

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Here’s what Chiefs HC Andy Reid expects of RB Melvin Gordon, DT Brandon Williams

#Chiefs HC Andy Reid spoke on the additions of RB Melvin Gordon and DT Brandon Williams to the team’s practice squad.

The Kansas City Chiefs beefed up their depth with some recent additions to the practice squad.

The team added veteran RB Melvin Gordon and veteran DT Brandon Williams. Both players have appeared in over 100 career NFL games and bring tons of experience to the roster.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Chiefs HC Andy Reid spoke on the addition of both players. He began with Gordon, laying out some expectations for what’s to come moving forward.

“We’ll just see,” Reid said. “That’s kind of the way we explained it to him (Melvin Gordon). We’ll see where this thing goes and where he’s at and where the running back situation goes but he sure has been a heck of a player in the league. I mean one thing we do know is we know him — whether he’s with the Chargers or with Denver — so we know what kind of player he is and so you know maybe there’s a time where he can help us too. But we take all kinds.”

It doesn’t seem like there’s any promise of Gordon being added to the 53-man roster immediately. With Clyde Edwards-Helaire on injured reserve and Jerick McKinnon dealing with a hamstring injury, things are rather fluid at the position. How quickly Gordon is able to pick up the playbook and blocking scheme will likely come into play here too.

As for Williams, it seems like there are expectations that he should be able to contribute, potentially in short order. One member of the coaching staff also played a big part in his joining the team.

“I’d tell you (we’re getting) a good player,” Reid said of Williams. “He and Defensive Line Coach Joe Cullen (have) history, so Joe speaks very highly of him and still thinks he can contribute. So, he’s been doing it a long time, but we welcome that. He’s a great kid and good football player.”

Cullen coached Williams from 2016-2020 when the two were with the Baltimore Ravens. He managed to coach Williams to his lone Pro Bowl season in 2018.

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Chiefs to sign DT Brandon Williams to practice squad

The #Chiefs are adding former #Ravens DT Brandon Williams to the practice squad.

The Kansas City Chiefs aren’t playing around when it comes to the depth their assembling ahead of their upcoming playoff push.

After adding RB Melvin Gordon and WR Bryan Edwards to the practice squad earlier this week, Kansas City is making an addition on the defensive side of the ball. As first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Chiefs are set to sign former Baltimore Ravens DT Brandon Williams to the practice squad.

Williams, 33, is a Kirkwood, Missouri native and played collegiate football at Missouri Southern. He was drafted by Baltimore in the third round of the 2013 NFL draft and spent the past nine seasons with the Ravens. During that span, the hulking 6-1 and 336-pound nose tackle started 114 games, recording 323 total tackles, 33 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries, 11 passes batted and a touchdown.

Williams reunites with Chiefs DL coach Joe Cullen, who spent five seasons as the defensive line coach of the Ravens. Williams had some of his best seasons under Cullen from 2016-2020.

While Williams hasn’t played since Week 18 of the 2021 NFL season, it’s safe to say that he’s in shape and ready to go.

Signing Williams will bring the practice squad in Kansas City back up to 16 players following the two releases that the team made on Tuesday.

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11 free-agent DT options for the Falcons to consider

Free Agency: Looking at some defensive tackle options for the Falcons following Vincent Taylor’s injury.

On Tuesday, Falcons defensive tackle Vincent Taylor ruptured his Achilles in a non-contact practice injury, creating a need for more depth on the interior of the team’s defensive line.

While it’s unlikely Atlanta will add a high-priced free agent, the team will probably look to sign someone to take Taylor’s spot. Here are 11 available DT options for the Falcons to consider in free agency.

Chauncey Billups explained how Brandon Williams can improve

Williams joined Kelvin Ransey as the only two Trail Blazers rookies to record at least 25 points and 12 assists in a game.

Brandon Williams on Monday registered his first career double-double to help lead the Portland Trail Blazers in an overtime loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Williams produced 25 points, a career-high 12 assists, four rebounds and four steals in 41 minutes during the 134-131 loss. He joined Kelvin Ransey as the only two Trail Blazers rookies to record at least 25 points and 12 assists in a game, according to Stathead.

The undrafted guard from Arizona found great success in penetrating into the paint and kicking it out to open teammates. In addition to his own scoring, his 12 assists helped the offense stay in a rhythm throughout the game, especially in the second half when he dished out seven dimes.

Coach Chauncey Billups believes that is his next area of improvement.

I thought Brandon was really good with his decision-making. He did such a good job of reading the backside of the defense when he gets downhill in the pick and rolls. He created probably four or five corner 3-point shots for us as he read the defense. He is getting a lot better at that. I was happy to see him create some other offense for us outside of scoring, that is kinda his next level of growth.

Since signing a two-way contract in February, Williams has produced.

He has scored in double figures in 13 of 16 games and is averaging 15.3 points, 3.7 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.2 steals during that span. He is fifth in scoring among rookies since the All-Star break and has emerged as a key player for Portland.

Williams is improving each game as he gets more comfortable.

I think my growth has been improving. Guys are trusting me, I’m trusting them. I’m starting to figure out where guys like the ball now. Then, when I get into the paint, I was starting to see guys are starting to contest my shot a lot more so making that extra pass and kicking it out. The credit goes to my teammates as well and knocking down the shots.

The Trail Blazers have reset things a bit and are looking ahead to next season. With Damian Lillard and Anfernee Simons out, guys like Williams and others have seen more playing time as the team takes a closer look at its younger players.

So far, Williams is making a strong case to stick around next season.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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There goes that Mann: Tre rising up in latest Rookie Power Rankings

Rookie Wire takes a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2021-22 season.

With less than 10 games to go in the 2021-22 season for most teams, the NBA has seen several storylines break out recently. As a result, there have been some incredible individual performances.

The stars of the league have seemingly gone off on a nightly basis as of late, while the rookie class continues to show out. They may not be exploding for 50 points like their peers, but the group continues to throw its weight around as one of the best classes in recent memory.

To make sense of it all, we took a look at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the latest edition of the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but, rather, to illustrate the best players week to week.