Gregg Williams
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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This article is about the American football coach. For the Australian rules footballer, see Greg Williams
| Gregg Williams | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | July 15, 1958 |
| Place of birth | Excelsior Springs, Missouri |
| Position(s) | Assistant Head Coach - Defense |
| College | Missouri State |
| Career Record | 17-31 |
| Coaching Stats | Pro Football Reference |
| Coaching Stats | DatabaseFootball |
| Team(s) as a coach/administrator | |
| 1990-1996 1997-1998 1999-2000 2001-2003 2004-Present |
Houston Oilers Tennessee Oilers Tennessee Titans Buffalo Bills* Washington Redskins |
Gregg Williams (born July 15, 1958) is the Assistant Head Coach - Defense of the Washington Redskins and the former head coach of the Buffalo Bills from 2001-2003. Though not successful as a head coach, he is widely viewed as one of the top defensive minds in football. Williams is known for crafting top-ranked defenses using "no-name" defensive players.
Williams was an assistant coach for the University of Houston under former Redskins head coach, Jack Pardee. He later went on to become the Special Teams coach of the Houston Oilers under then defensive coordinator, Buddy Ryan. From 1994-1996, Williams was the linebackers coach for the Oilers.
From 1997-2000, Williams was promoted to Defensive Coordinator of the now Tennessee Titans after the Oilers moved out of Houston. As the Defensive Coordinator, the Titans led the league in total defense and only gave up 191 points, the third fewest in the NFL since the league adopted the 16-game schedule in 1978. The defense also helped lead the Titans to Super Bowl XXXIV where they lost to the St. Louis Rams.
He earned his first head coaching position with the Buffalo Bills. As the Bills' head coach, his team was known for highly conservative calls, especially on offense. He was the inspiration for Gregg Easterbrook's designation of "the maroon zone" by constantly punting in opponent territory. Williams was 17-31 as the Bills' coach, and was fired after a 6-10 record in the 2003 season.
After his release from Buffalo, Williams was at the top of several NFL teams' list for the position of defensive coordinator. Williams quickly signed with the Redskins, the only team with which he interviewed, due to the fact that Head Coach Joe Gibbs offered him total autonomy over his defensive players and defensive coaching staff.
In Washington, with Williams' aggressive defensive scheme, the Reskins' defense ranked 3rd in the NFL in 2004 and 9th in 2005.
On Tuesday, January 3, 2006, Williams signed an 3-year extension, reportedly worth $8 million, to remain with the Redskins making him the highest paid assistant coach in the NFL, earning him more than many NFL Head Coaches.
* - Head Coach
[edit] Trivia
- Viewed by many Redskin fans and the D.C. area's general media as the natural successor to Joe Gibbs as the Redskins' Head Coach.
- Williams credits his players and coaching staff as the main reason for staying in Washington.
- His 2006 contract extension stipulates that he will receive a $1 million bonus/compensation if he does not succeed Joe Gibbs as Redskins' Head Coach. He must still be with the team at the time of Gibbs's retirement.
- Williams' daughter attends Loudoun County High School in Leesburg, and is a member of the girls basketball team, where they were state semifinalists in 2006.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Wade Phillips |
Buffalo Bills Head Coaches 2001–2003 |
Succeeded by Mike Mularkey |
| Preceded by ' |
Tennessee Titans Defensive Coordinators 1997-2000 |
Succeeded by Jim Schwartz |
| Buffalo Bills Head Coaches |
|---|
| Ramsey • Saban • Collier • Johnson • Rauch • Johnson • Saban • Ringo • Knox • Stephenson • Bullough • Levy • W. Phillips • Williams • Mularkey • Jauron |
