EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (Jan. 19, 2012) - Former William and Mary running
back Alan Williams ('92) has been named the Minnesota Vikings defensive
coordinator.
Williams joins the Vikings after
spending the past 10 seasons on the Indianapolis Colts staff where he coached
defensive backs. During his 11 years in the NFL (he worked one season with the Tampa
Bay Buccaneers, 2001), he has helped his teams reach the playoffs 10 times,
earn seven division titles and make two Super Bowl appearances. Additionally,
he helped guide Antoine Bethea and Bob Sanders to multiple Pro Bowl selections,
while Sanders earned the 2007 Associated Press Defensive Player of the Year
award.
Williams finished his playing
career at W&M with 1,220 rushing yards and 15 rushing touchdowns, while he totaled
131 receptions for 1,331 yards with seven scores. As a senior, he led the Tribe
in receptions (57) and receiving yards (598).
Williams becomes one of six
former Tribe players or coaches who currently serve as an NFL head coach or
coordinator. The impressive list includes Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike
Tomlin, San Diego Chargers offensive coordinator Hal Hunter, Carolina Panthers
defensive coordinator Sean McDermott, Miami Dolphins offensive coordinator
Brian Daboll and Washington Redskins special teams coordinator Danny Smith.
Alan Williams Quotes
Opening statement:
First of
all I would like to thank the Wilf family for giving me the opportunity, along
with Rick Spielman and Leslie Frazier, for giving me the opportunity and
allowing me to come up and be a part of, what I think, is one of the most storied
franchises in the NFL. In my days in Indianapolis, Coach Tony Dungy used
to talk about his time spent with the Vikings and all of his fond memories of
the community, the fans, and the program. So at this time, to be a part
of the Minnesota Vikings is a dream come true.
Q: As you were considering this
position, what were the things that really appealed to you about this team?
A: The number one thing was the
chance to work with Leslie Frazier again. I know you are all aware that
we worked together in Indy and when Leslie came to Indianapolis we were able to
win a championship there. It was another opportunity to work together, first of
all, and then to win some more championships. In League circles, Minnesota is
considered a very good team and they have always been top of the League in
defense and anytime you get a chance to come in with a lot of the building
blocks already in place, you have to jump at that.
Q: Coach Frazier talked about
wanting to be hands-on with the defense, particularly early on and setting the
tone, how do you expect that relationship to function?
A: We worked hand in hand together
when we coached the secondary in Indianapolis, we are very familiar with one
another's philosophy in terms of defense, our terminology, and the way we coach
is very similar. I only can see that as a positive that Leslie will be
hands-on with the defense. He brings a wealth of experience, a wealth of
knowledge; he is very easy to work with so I look forward to Leslie's added
involvement with the defense.
Q: Earlier Leslie had mentioned how
important it was to get you in now as well as the rest of the staff so you can
go to the Senior Bowl and bond, how important is it to you to make that trip
and be with the rest of the crew and establish something before OTAs and mini
camps.
A: I look at that as a positive
also. The new staffs nowadays don't get that chance to work together and
gel, and become comfortable with one another and it's almost a camp, so to
speak, for the coaching staff. So under NFL rules we may get a little of a leg
up on other coaching staffs to get a chance to work together.
Q: Where were you at in your thought
process before Leslie called you, where were you looking into and how did this
come to fruition in the last few days?
A: I wasn't looking into anything; I
was in a holding pattern. I was still under contract and I had a job with the
Colts. I was just waiting and seeing what Coach Caldwell's status was going to
be.
Q: Many people have compared the
coaching style of Tony Dungy and Leslie Frazier is there anything that appealed
to you about that coaching style?
A: Both are very consistent in their
approach to teaching. They are extremely good teachers, they are extremely
effective communicators and again they are consistent in what they do.
That is one thing that when you send a message and when you are coaching,
whatever your philosophy may be that you are consistent in that message.
Both have a great relationship with their players. The players in
Indianapolis respected Leslie a great deal just like they did Tony Dungy. Any
time a player respects their coach because they know that the coach can improve
their skill and performance on the football field that is a major thing for the
coach. The one thing Leslie could do well in Indianapolis was that he could
take a young player and you would see a great deal of improvement from that
player. Good coaches improve players and that's what Leslie could do.
Q: With your experience with Leslie,
do you bring in any philosophically different schemes that you have developed?
A: No, not really. I am very
familiar with the Tampa 2 scheme, that's what I cut my teeth under, when I was
with Coach Dungy in Tampa Bay. When Leslie came to the Colts, the one
thing that he did bring was a wealth of knowledge of the late Jim Johnson's
defense, so I have learned things too, like man coverage and blitz packages,
that Leslie is familiar with. I would see us as very similar in our philosophy
as well as the technique part of what we do.
Q: What will it be like working and
overseeing Fred Pagac?
A: I think the media looks at that
as a negative, but I have known Pagac through Mike Tomlin when they first got
to Minnesota. Pagac brings a wealth of knowledge and experience. To those
people who are not familiar with some of the assistant coaches in the NFL it is
only a plus that Pagac is still on the staff. Also, for anyone who is not
interested in winning, that may be a problem, but I assure you that Pagac wants
to win, it's first and foremost above egos, so it's a plus that Pagac decided
to stay with Minnesota.
Q: Do you know how you are going to
split up the duties between him and Mike Singletary?
A: We are not sure yet, that is
something that remains to be seen and that's something that Leslie and I will
talk about with Mike and Coach Pagac and we will come to a conclusion a little
bit later and the neat thing is that we get to test it out at the Senior Bowl
to see how we will work together and see how we will work together and gel. The
neat thing also is that we don't have to know right now.
Q: Leslie had mentioned that the
situation only works with the personalities with the men involved like Pagac,
like Mike Singletary, would it be different if you did not know these men,
would you be comfortable if you did not know these men?
A: Well two things, I know Pagac, I
know his reputation, and I know he is a man of high character, he likes to win,
and I also know Leslie and I trust Leslie's judgment. When I first came in
Leslie said it was a situation that would work out. If Leslie tells me that I
know his word is golden and his judgment is second to none. So, if he says
that, I feel comfortable with that.
Q: When you look at the tape what
can you see that you can do to help improve this defense, especially on the
back end?
A: When you know what, you have
jumped way ahead of me, you said 'after you watched the tape', I don't think I
have watched enough tape to make that discern just yet, if you give me a little
bit of time I will answer that question in more specifics.
Q: What do you think you can bring,
especially in your background, to help that second unit?
A: Sometimes the perception is, that
when a team does not perform as well as the media should think, they tend to
think that it should be blown up, that it should be wholesale changes, but I
don't believe that. I think that a lot of times, it's a tackle here, an
assignment there that allows you to be more successful. It's a fine, fine
line between being in the lower half and the top half of the NFL in terms of
rankings, so with that I think we will pay attention to detail, I think we will
start from the ground up, like it was a few years ago. With that I think you
will see some dramatic changes in how we play and also how fast that we play.
Q: Leslie said that he was getting a
little bit nervous as he got deeper into this process about getting the right
guy in place for this job and that you had some other opportunities as well,
where were you leaning as you were interviewing with the Vikings and
entertaining that offer?
A: I'm not sure what opportunities
Leslie was talking about, you will have to ask him about those, my job was just
to sit tight and go from there, I'm not sure if Leslie had some inside
information. Head coaches talk from time to time and so I'm not sure if my name
was mentioned with any other opportunities, but at that time when Leslie came
calling for me, I was the secondary coach and I had a job.
Q: In regards to player development,
what do you consider your strengths in that department?
A: Really developing young players.
As a secondary coach with Indianapolis, we drafted a lot of young DBs, so I
would think what I do best is be able to develop a young player and have him at
a winning level early in his career. When I say early, I mean in the first part
of his career; his first year. I think that's important when you are
talking about a roster from top-bottom, that your veterans play like veterans
and you're 'A' players play 'A' football on a consistent basis, but also with
the secondary, injuries are just a part of the ball game. What I did in
Indianapolis is when a veteran was out, a young player could hold down the fort
and play winning football until that veteran or starter came back. That
would be what I think I bring to the table and what I do best.
Q: Do you get a two year contract?
A: I did, yes.
Q: Can you speak to your
relationship with Mike Tomlin; I know that goes way back to the William &
Mary days, any traits you may share with him as well?
A: Mike's personality is
a little bit different from mine, but one thing I think we do share is that we
are fundamentalists. We are not going to try to trick you in terms of schemes;
we are just going to be fundamentally sound. One thing that we got from Tony
Dungy, which came through Chuck Knoll is to say champions are champions not
because they, do the extraordinary things, but because they do the ordinary
things better than anyone else. That is what I think we will do, we are going
to run, we are going to tackle, we are going to hit, we are going to play smart
football, and we are going to play tough football better than our
opponent. We are going to out-execute on Sunday and day in and day out
better than our opponent.
Vikings Head Coach
Leslie Frazier Quotes
Opening statement:
Hey guys,
I'm sure you're all aware that Alan Williams is going to be our new Defensive
Coordinator and I'm really excited about Alan joining our staff and really
bringing some new energy to what we're trying to get accomplished and also, we
hired Brendan Daly to coach our defensive line. Brendan was most recently with
the Rams. I'm sure you remember he was with us about three years ago and he's
done a great job over these last three years of really growing as a defensive
line coach, so really looking forward to having those guys on our staff.
Q: As you were looking at the
coaching movement around the League, were you getting nervous about how long it
was taking you to get somebody to take the job?
A: You're right. There was a
lot of movement and there still is movement going on and the only things I was
a little concerned with was when they started naming head coaches, the list of
candidates would really shrink and we're fortunate that Alan was available and
that the Colts let us interview him. There was a time where I wasn't sure if
they would even let us interview him because I know he was a candidate in some
other places as well. Yeah, I was a little nervous that we might not be able to
get the guy that we wanted.
Q: In the two years that you spent
with Alan in Indianapolis, what left an impression on you and what impresses
you about him now?
A: The thing that really stuck out
to me was how good of a teacher he was and how well he communicated and related
to the players. Over the last few years, there were things that he did there
that really helped their defense and helped their team there in Indianapolis.
Excellent teacher, very good communicator, has very good command with the
players and he'll be able to bring that up here to Minnesota.
Q: Give us your rationale on what
you've done with Fred Pagac, Mike Singletary, and Karl Dunbar.
A: Fred is an outstanding coach and
I'm just thrilled that he was willing to accept this role to work with our linebackers
along with Mike Singletary. Two guys who I have a great deal of respect for as
coaches in their respective roles and the fact that they're both going to be in
that role with our linebackers, I'm believing we're going to have the best
linebacker corps in the National Football League. Thrilled that Fred will
accept this role and it really took a lot when he decided to do that. As far as
Karl is concerned, Karl did a great job for us a number of years here for us
working with our defensive line and I wish him nothing but the best. I have the
utmost respect for Karl Dunbar.
Q: Based on Alan's experience in the
Tampa 2 defense, is it safe to say you will stick with that philosophy and what
does that mean moving forward?
A: We are going to keep a lot of the
same principles in place. There are things that the Colts did that are a little
bit different than what we do when Alan and I were talking about, this position
that I would like to incorporate down here and really try to improve on some
things that we've done. He will brings some fresh ideas, a new train of thought
with him. I did think a little bit about some other options that were available
but after evaluating our season and also looking at our history here on
defense, I didn't want to get too far away from the things that have helped us
be a successful defense over the years.
Q: Did you and Fred have a
communication issue? Why the change at the head of it (defense) for you
personally?
A: I don't know if it was any one
thing. It just felt like it was the direction we needed to go to hopefully
improve here in 2012. We have to improve, on the defensive side as well as the
offense. We have to improve as a team. This is a move that hopefully will help
us to improve and that's what it was based on.
Q: Can you clarify the status of the
other defensive assistants?
A: Joe Woods will coach the
secondary this next season. Fred and Mike will work with our linebackers.
Brendan Daly is going to coach our defensive line. Matt Sheldon is not under
contract so we're trying to work through some things to determine what's going
to happen with him. Jeff Imamura, just trying to determine what role he will
play but he'll be on our staff in 2012 but he will remain in a quality control
position but we're exploring some of the things we might be able to do with
Jeff.
Q: Do you not expect any changes on
offense at this point?
A: We've gotten our staff settled on
offense, defense, and special teams. Everybody is looking forward to going down
to the Senior Bowl and starting the 2012 season as far as evaluating players
and really getting started on rebuilding our roster and reshaping our roster. I
think everybody is kind of looking forward to getting together and really
finding us some players for 2012.
Q: When did you come to the
determination that you were comfortable with keeping two linebackers coaches
and did you have any concerns with it?
A: After sitting down and talking
with the guys about what I was thinking and just hearing their feedback, that
assured me that it could work. You're exactly right, if you don't have the
right kind of people, it can be kind of a dicey situation but the fact that we
have good people that I've worked with before, I thought about the situation in
Chicago when (Bob) Babich stepped back and Rod Marinelli came in with Lovie
(Smith) and made it work and I've seen some other situations around the League
where it works I think, as long as you have the right people in the room and I
think we do.
Q: With the trouble in the secondary
last season, how much did you focus on bringing somebody in with experience
with defensive backs?
A: Alan's background in the
secondary is an added plus, there's no question about it. I think one of the
things that will help our secondary is our doing a good job of evaluating along
with drafting players that play in the secondary in this draft and if we can do
some things to help ourselves in the Draft, or NFL free agency, I think our
secondary will improve.
Q: Could you give us a breakdown of
how it will work in terms of day to day coaching of the linebackers? Are they
going to split it down the middle?
A: The way things are now in our
League, you're in so many sub situations where you're in nickel or dime and
sometimes in base. It's almost like what happens sometimes in the secondary
with guys becoming specialized, whether they're in the nickel package or
whether they're in the base package. Being able to coach the base package or
just the packages in our situation, some of the three-down looks that we've
seen, I think having the people that we'll have on our defense working with our
linebackers should enhance what we're trying to do with some of the packages
that we're going to try and throw at people. I think it's going to be a win-win
for us.
Q: What types of things did you try
to sell Alan on why this would be a good job to take?
A: I think one of the things that
was a selling point was he looked at our tape prior to coming up here to
interview and he realized that, as difficult as this season was, there still
are some pieces in place for this to be a good defense and I know from talking
with him, that really piqued his interest and the fact that one of the things I
want to be able to do in 2012, one I mentioned to him is I really want to have
a hand in what we're doing early on to assist him in what we're trying to get
done and where I want our defense to go and the fact that we have a prior
relationship made a difference in his deciding that he wanted to accept this
role. But the fact that we have some pieces with Jared Allen in place, Kevin
Williams, with Chad Greenway, those factors made a difference as he looked at
some of the other possibilities that were out there for him.
Q: Do you think you were too hands-off
with Fred Pagac earlier in the season?
A: I don't know. I just know that in
2012, as we're putting this together, I really want to be involved in what
we're doing and how we're planning things. I really want to make sure we're
headed in the right direction and having an offseason will help in that way. I
don't want to feel as if I have to be involved with offense or defense or
special teams, although I still will be involved, but not to the degree that I
was earlier in 2011. I really want to make sure we're headed in the right
direction on the defensive side.
Q: Is your anticipation that Alan
will handle 100 percent of the defensive play calls?
A: Like I said a moment ago, early
on I really want to be involved with what we're doing and as we get through
OTAs and minicamps, I'll make a determination on what direction we want to go
but I have a good feel initially for how I want to do it and having Alan here,
somebody I know, who thinks the same way that I think and really has an idea of
what I'm looking for, that's going to be a big plus.
Q: Do you believe not having OTAs or
minicamps last offseason infringed on Fred's ability to carry through with what
you wanted and how important is it now to get the coaches you want in place so
you can all be on the same page?
A: Going to the Senior Bowl is
really big for us, especially with some of the changes that were made on our
staff and I told some of our guys that this week that it's really a start for
us as far as gelling as a staff and beginning to put things in place prior to
the OTAs and the minicamps as a staff. I think it's going to be a big plus for
us, a big advantage in that way. Not only do we get a chance to look at the
players and visit with them and spend more time with them than we would if we
were outsiders. Having this whole offseason together I have to believe is going
to be a tremendous benefit to all of us, our entire staff and squad as well.
Not that that's an excuse for us not having more wins a season ago, but I have
to believe it will be a plus for us.
Q: What are Brendan Daly's strengths
in your eyes and what is the value in the familiarity that he has with several
of the guys he'll coach right away?
A: With the energy and the
enthusiasm that he coaches with and the fact that he is an excellent teacher of
the fundamentals that we're looking for on our defensive line, and he is such a
technician that it should really help us. We played good football up front for
a number of years and what he did in St. Louis with Chris Long and some of
their young players has really impressed me, that he did some good things there
and then the familiarity with our work and what we're expecting, both factors
played a role in determining whether or not he'd be our defensive line coach.
Q: What about 2011 prompted you to
want to take over the defense?
A: I don't want to say I want to
take it over now. I don't want to do that. I don't think it will serve me very
well to get myself to the point where I can't oversee some of the things I need
to see on our team. We are an evolving football team. We really have to do some
serious things with our roster in order to get back in the mix in our division
and in our conference. I don't want to get immersed to the point where I'm the
defensive coordinator slash head coach. Some people can do that but I don't
think I can. I don't want to go in that direction. I do want to take the lead
on some things early on and really set the tone on how I want things done and I
think that's important after what we experienced this past season.
Q: What role did Rick Spielman play
as you went through this process of looking for a coordinator?
A: He was a sounding board for me as
we talked with different people about particular candidates around the League
and he was a great resource as we gathered information on different individuals
we were considering. Just having him there to communicate with and bounce ideas
off of and to hear some of his feedback was very important in this process.
Q: Did you ever offer the job to Mel
Tucker or anybody else?
A: I talked with Mel and a few other
candidates about working here and what it would take to work here and at the
end of the day, he felt like, for him, the best situation for him was to remain
in Jacksonville and not move his family. I did get to the point where I didn't
want to do anything with any of the candidates until they made a decision about
what was best for them. It was important that I went through this process to
just try to determine what was the best fit for us. I think things really
worked out the way they should. Alan is going to be a great fit for what we're
trying to get done.
Q: Did you talk to Steve Spagnuolo
about the job at all?
A: Steve and I, we talked all
throughout the season, at the end of the season and after the season about a
lot of things. I just knew that after the season he was going through a lot,
just trying to ascertain about what his future was. We didn't really get to the
point where we were talking about working here in Minnesota but just trying to
help him work through some of the feelings he had after the Rams.
Q: What is your explanation on why
it was time to cut ties with Karl Dunbar?
A: There was no one thing. As I
mentioned earlier, Karl did a great job up here. It's difficult when you make
these decisions. This has not been easy at all and I know it hasn't been easy
for guys to work through. We've made a decision. I think Brendan Daly is going
to do a great job for us. I think he'll develop a great rapport with our
defensive line and we're looking forward to watching him work, watching him
help our defensive continue to work towards improvement.
Q: Did you have Brendan in mind
before parting ways with Karl Dunbar?
A: I really didn't think about a lot
of these things in great detail until our season was over. I was still trying
to evaluate certain things as the year went on with more so our personnel and
what we were doing but after the season was over, I had to take a hard look at
a lot of things and made a decision and as I mentioned, I'm looking forward to
watching Brendan work with our players this offseason and into the regular
season.
Q: What's the most valuable part of
coaching at the Senior Bowl?
A: The fact
that we get a chance to work hands-on with the players, we get to talk with
them, spend time with them, eat in the cafeteria with them, talk about their
lifestyle. It will be immeasurable, the time that we'll be able to be around
them and be able to evaluate these players because as you guys know, it's tough
to go wrong when you're drafting with the third pick in the Draft. We have to
hit on that but now when you get to rounds five, six and seven, those rounds
are as important as that first round when you are trying to revamp your roster
like we are. Being there at the Senior Bowl and working with these guys and
consider this, we drafted five guys that played in the Senior Bowl a year ago.
We drafted the MVP of the Senior Bowl a year ago, our quarterback. For us to be
this up close and personal with these players should help us when we have 10
picks in this draft. We hope to hit on every one of them. That's the goal, to
hit on every one of them where they can be contributive to our team and that's
the situation that we're in and then from a coaching standpoint, now we get a
head start on developing the chemistry that's going to be so necessary for us
to improve this next season so I'm excited about the fact that we'll be in
meetings, we'll be able to start developing some of the things we want to
develop for 2012.