If Gregg Williams was hoping a return to the NFL is in his future, the audio clip that is making the internet rounds on Thursday will do nothing to help his case. We have heard the rumors and stories about Williams telling his players to target particular body parts, so none of this should come a shock and much of it is just locker room banter. It will, however, make Williams look even worse in the eyes of Roger Goodell.
The following audio clip features language that is extremely NSFW, but is definitely worth a listen if you want to know the type of stuff that Williams said to his defense prior to games. The clip, which was shared by Yahoo! Sports, was recorded by documentary filmmaker Sean Pamphilon. Pamphilon directed the “Run Ricky Run” documentary that was featured on ESPN. He had access to some Saints team functions during the 2011 season and recorded the audio the night before the playoff game between the Saints and Niners. It provides pretty clear evidence that Williams wanted his players to target Alex Smith’s head and Michael Crabtree’s ACL, among other disturbing demands. Have a listen:
Goodell didn’t need any more reasons to punish Williams, but there are probably more clips like this one that will be surfacing over the next year or so. In a way it’s unfair to judge Williams’ speeches when we haven’t stacked them up against the stuff other defensive coordinators say before big games, but there’s no question he was urging his players to injure their opponent and target certain body parts. If Goodell allows him to coach again after all this, his message won’t be clear enough.
Photo credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE
