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 | FF | BK | INT | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD | PD |
| Chick-fil-A BOWL | Virginia Tech | L 37-14 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 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.
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