100 in 100: Dan Williams (52 of 100)

by Drew K on Mar 4, 2010 2:00 PM PST in 100 in 100 (2010) Comment 22 comments

A lot of folks believe that Dan Williams will be drafted to play nose tackle in a 3-4 defense at the next level. While it is certainly a possibility, and he definitely has the size to do it, there is the possibility that he could play defensive tackle in a 4-3. While at Tennessee, Williams stayed under the radar and was not the highlight as far as hype was concerned for most of the year. Sometimes in game situations a lack of attention can be a good thing and may not be doubled all that much. But on the other side of that, it could hurt a player once they get to the next level because of a lack of experience in handling double teams. This was not the case with Dan Williams however. He drew plenty of attention and handled it exceptionally. The largest reason he stayed under the radar though was partially due to living in the shadow of two other defensive tackles that you may have heard of in Ndamukong Suh and Gerald McCoy. Next to those two guys, Williams is considered by most to be the next best defensive lineman in the upcoming draft.

This biggest question surrounding Dan Williams has not been where he will be drafted but when. Some think that he will be an early first half of the 1st Round, others think he will be taken in the second half of the 1nd Round, and there is even some that feel he can fall in to the first part of the 2nd Round. If he is being looked at as a nose tackle, there is also the possibility of him being selected after fellow nose tackle Terrence Cody who shed 16 LBS before the NFL Scouting Combine and plans on getting down to 345 LBS or so before his Pro Day. Both are very talented, but if I'm personally selecting for any team, and need a nose tackle, I am going to lean more toward Dan Williams.

Below, we'll look at Williams' highlights, stats, and I'll provide projection of where I think Williams could end up.

If you've never seen Dan Williams, then you definitely should click here to watch. You will see both good and bad but mostly good on just what Williams brings to the table. He is big, strong, and fast for his size... did I mention he was big? Enjoy the feed.

AWARDS AND HONORS:

2009 All-SEC First Team

CAREER STATS:

Stats Overview	Tackles						Misc		Interceptions
YEAR	TOT	SOLO	AST	SACK	STF	STFY	FF	BK	INT	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD	PD
2006	2	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
2007	40	15	25	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
2008	49	23	26	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
2009	62	30	32	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0

2009 Regular Season Game Log			Tackles						Misc		Interceptions
DATE	OPP	RESULT	TOT	SOLO	AST	SACK	STF	STFY	FF	BK	INT	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD	PD
9/5	Western Kentucky	W 63-7	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
9/12	UCLA	L 19-15	8	4	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
9/19	@Florida	L 23-13	4	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
9/26	Ohio	W 34-23	3	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
10/3	Auburn	L 26-22	7	2	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
10/10	Georgia	W 45-19	5	3	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
10/24	@Alabama	L 12-10	6	2	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
10/31	South Carolina	W 31-13	4	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
11/7	Memphis	W 56-28	4	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
11/14	@Mississippi	L 42-17	9	4	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
11/21	Vanderbilt	W 31-16	4	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0
11/28	@Kentucky	W 30-24	5	2	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0

2009 Postseason Game Log

Tackles

Misc

Interceptions

BOWL

OPP

RESULT

TOT

SOLO

AST

SACK

STF

STFY

INT

YDS

AVG

LNG

Chick-fil-A BOWL

Virginia Tech

L 37-14

0.0

SUMMARY AND PROJECTION:

I am one of the people that think Williams will be drafted in the second half of the 1st Round. But I think hands down that he doesn't make it out of the 1st Round. He is worthy of a 1st in my opinion. If he fell in to the first part of the 2nd Round, it would be an absolute steal for whatever team that drafted him there.

Possibilities -- 1st Round; Picks 10-32. Possible Teams: Dolphins, Broncos, Giants, 49ers, Steelers, Cardinals, Saints.

For more on 100 in 100 articles follow the link:

http://www.ninersnation.com/section/100-in-100-2010

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Comments

Nose tackle

With Franklin likely back for at least one more year, any thoughts on how/if the 49ers address nose tackle this offseason?

by David Fucillo (Fooch) on Mar 4, 2010 2:39 PM PST reply actions

I’m not exactly sure but some have speculated that we could spend a first on him, rotate him with Franklin, and eventually replace Franklin. Me, personally, I am not so sure we’d spend a 1st on him unless we somehow got a 3rd first round pick. But some people have mocked him to us and others on this site think there is a good chance we target him. If a 3-5 year deal is done with Franklin, I’m not so sure we’d target a NT until 2-3 years from now

A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

by Drew K on Mar 4, 2010 2:54 PM PST up reply actions

nose tackles

At this point, even if Franklin is around for one year, it would kind of seem like a luxury to use a first round pick on a nose tackle. Still a need thought I suppose.

by David Fucillo (Fooch) on Mar 4, 2010 2:58 PM PST up reply actions

That’s sort of how I feel on that too

A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

by Drew K on Mar 4, 2010 3:00 PM PST up reply actions

I did a comparison awhile back about NT

it takes something like 3 years average for a NT to work into a starting job in the league. While I don’t want to spend a first rounder on one i would not be opposed to picking one up in the 3rd or later and start rotating him behind Franklin.

Yes Drew K, Tim Tebow will probably get picked in the first round.

by smileyman on Mar 4, 2010 3:03 PM PST up reply actions

I would rather just get a veteran free agent and plug him in right away. Although thats easier said than done

A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

by Drew K on Mar 4, 2010 3:08 PM PST up reply actions

NT's don't come up often in FA

Yes Drew K, Tim Tebow will probably get picked in the first round.

by smileyman on Mar 4, 2010 3:22 PM PST up reply actions

Jamaal Williams was released form SD, so he or Cody will have a SD jersey to sport on draft day.

I think with them and the Dolphins and possibly niners, I think they both go off of the board in the first.

Mock, Yeah, ing, Yeah, Berry Yeah, Yeah, Yeah
CLE #7- 1500pts, #39 510 pts, #103 92pts--49ers 2 1st 2200pts
1a. traded for Berry, 1b. traded for Berry(CLE) 1c. #7 Eric Berry, 2a(Cle) Valdheer, 2b Mike Johnson OG, 3. Jacoby Ford WR, 4a(Cle) D McCourty 4b. Stephen Williams, 5. Trindion Holliday, 6. Zac Robinson 7. FB

by rlott#42 on Mar 4, 2010 3:45 PM PST up reply actions

Jamaal Williams is done.

He’s coming off an injury and he’s on the wrong side of 30.

What we've got here is a failure to communicate.

by chikmagnet_565 on Mar 4, 2010 4:48 PM PST up reply actions

Well we did land Franklin who was a back up, so it is possible if we’re looking in the right places. But I agree it doesn’t happen as much as let’s say WR’s or OL or that. But it can be done if you plan it accordingly

A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

by Drew K on Mar 4, 2010 3:45 PM PST up reply actions

It's tough

Nolan saw potential in Franklin so that’s why he brought him over.
We don’t have that inside info anywhere now.

What we've got here is a failure to communicate.

by chikmagnet_565 on Mar 4, 2010 4:49 PM PST up reply actions

Singletary had more to do with that than people give him credit for. he was a defensive coach on that team and already knew Franklins potential first hand.

A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

by Drew K on Mar 4, 2010 4:58 PM PST up reply actions

That's what I think too

otherwise nobody would sign a backup that hardly got to play

Yes Drew K, Tim Tebow will probably get picked in the first round.

by smileyman on Mar 4, 2010 5:20 PM PST up reply actions

EH, I’m not a big believer in Singletarys influence on potential talent. I credit Nolan to the defensive talent that was put on that team while he was in office.

by jonesin25 on Mar 4, 2010 8:00 PM PST up reply actions

Let me clarify that I also credit Nolan to the lack of talent in many positions as well.

by jonesin25 on Mar 4, 2010 8:02 PM PST up reply actions

Why not? He obviously turned Davis around. What evidence leads you to believe that?

A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

by Drew K on Mar 4, 2010 8:14 PM PST up reply actions

He turned Davis attitude around, yes. He didn’t discover Davis. I’m just talking about his scouting abilities here. Just listening to him talk about his role with Nolan when he first got hired as Head Coach, especially about Willis. If it weren’t for Nolan and McC we wouldn’t have Willis, Abrayo, J.Smith, Takeo, Etc. I also don’t believe Sing has to much influence on personnel, just my thoughts though.

by jonesin25 on Mar 5, 2010 11:08 PM PST up reply actions

There's one we could steal around the 6th

Jeff Owens of Georgia. He looks like he could make for a great study to Franklin and maybe become the heir apparent.

by Mangoman on Mar 4, 2010 5:03 PM PST up reply actions

I'd like to see a NT drafted this year.

The draft is fairly deep at the position.
Although I believe it depends on how the 49ers feel about Kentwan Balmer, they have rotated him at NT but we don’t know if they want to move him there permanently or put him at LDE (I believe that Balmer at LDE makes the most sense).

As we all know, DLinemen generally take a long time to develop, Franklin isn’t going to get any younger, might as well just draft his replacement now.
Some say next year, but you just don’t know if next year’s draft will be a deep and talented as this one.
Note: There is also the possibility that Franklin fizzles out next year and he isn’t re-signed.

What we've got here is a failure to communicate.

by chikmagnet_565 on Mar 4, 2010 4:47 PM PST up reply actions

I would like a NT for San Francisco...

but I’m more rooting for Cam Thomas in round 3 (unlikely) or Torrell Troup in round 4 or 5.

I do like Dan Williams, but in round 1 San Francisco has other needs (Spiller + OT). (However, I hope he makes it to pick 20, but that’s just me).

by TexansDC on Mar 4, 2010 7:02 PM PST up reply actions

On Dan Williams

I really like how he plays.
He gets double-teamed on nearly every play and holds the point extremely well.
He’s good at moving laterally and can make the play even when the ball is 5-10 yards away from him (something Cody can’t do).

What we've got here is a failure to communicate.

by chikmagnet_565 on Mar 4, 2010 4:50 PM PST reply actions

He's a wall

Very hard to move. There was a play I saw in the highlights where the OL appeared to push the entire defensive front back but Williams didn’t go down and made the tackle himself. Very strong. Looks like he’s got decent pass rushing technique too.

by Mangoman on Mar 4, 2010 5:08 PM PST up reply actions