vicmantak
02-11-2006, 04:53 AM
Former Pro Football Weekly draft analyst Joel Buchsbaum who made a long and distinguished contribution to pro football coverage died in December 2003 at the age of 48; but the following are his comments about Mike Williams before he was drafted by the Buffalo Bills on the still 2002 nightmare:
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width="100%" border=1><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=center align=middle width="100%" bgColor=#c0c0c0>OT Mike Williams</TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle width="100%" bgColor=#c0c0c0>(6-5 5/8, 375, 5.09) Texas</TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">Notes: Two-way lineman and a track weight man in high school. Backup offensive tackle, special-teams player and short-yardage defensive tackle as a freshman in 1998 and had four stops. Top backup offensive tackle in ’99 and started four times on the right side. Played in every game and started from Game Two on the following year, and after a slow start, he got better and better. Coaches blamed him for only one sack, but he really seemed to struggle as a pass blocker early in the year. Started every game and was a consensus All-American in ’01. Played right tackle, but team’s starting quarterback (Chris Simms) was a lefty, making Williams’ side the blind side. Positives: Awesome size. Huge all over and can play at 340 pounds without losing anything. Is still very young. Turned 21 in November and has just scratched the surface of his ability. A terrific athlete for one so large. Williams is very active, flexible, coordinated and light on his feet for a man his size. He has quick feet and quick, strong, explosive hands. Will often jar defenders with his hand punch. Can bend his knees, sink his hips and play with leverage, and when he does, no one is going to overpower or even push him backward. Can be a devastating drive blocker when he plays with leverage. Was the Longhorns’ co-offensive lineman of the year in 2000 while playing on the same line as Leonard Davis, the No. 2 overall draft pick last year. Williams was the team’s best blocker in 2001. Has Davis-like size and may be an even better athlete.
Negatives: While not a pear-shaped athlete, Williams seems to have a coating of baby fat on his body and is far from being cut; in other words, he doesn’t have the muscular definition of a weightlifter. When he gets too heavy — and he was 375 pounds at the Combine — he tends to play top-heavy and overextend. Tends to get lazy about bending his knees and keeping his pads low and becomes a pusher and shover. When he gets tired, he does not move his feet much and will just use his size and lean on the defender and try to engulf him. While he really likes football, Williams also loves eating, and he must cut down on the latter and spend more time in the weight room and running to realize his nearly unlimited potential. Left tackles are more valuable than right tackles, and while he has a left tackle’s feet and athletic ability, Williams has always been a right tackle, and some players just can’t switch sides, because everything is reversed. Hurt his knee in college early in the 2001 season and may have a little looseness in it.
Summary: Is in the same class with Leonard Davis. Could be a top-five pick if teams are convinced he can move to left tackle after working him out, or a top-10 choice if they are not certain.
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http://archive.profootballweekly.com/content/archives2001/draft_2001/scoutingreports_ol.asp
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width="100%" border=1><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=center align=middle width="100%" bgColor=#c0c0c0>OT Mike Williams</TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle width="100%" bgColor=#c0c0c0>(6-5 5/8, 375, 5.09) Texas</TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">Notes: Two-way lineman and a track weight man in high school. Backup offensive tackle, special-teams player and short-yardage defensive tackle as a freshman in 1998 and had four stops. Top backup offensive tackle in ’99 and started four times on the right side. Played in every game and started from Game Two on the following year, and after a slow start, he got better and better. Coaches blamed him for only one sack, but he really seemed to struggle as a pass blocker early in the year. Started every game and was a consensus All-American in ’01. Played right tackle, but team’s starting quarterback (Chris Simms) was a lefty, making Williams’ side the blind side. Positives: Awesome size. Huge all over and can play at 340 pounds without losing anything. Is still very young. Turned 21 in November and has just scratched the surface of his ability. A terrific athlete for one so large. Williams is very active, flexible, coordinated and light on his feet for a man his size. He has quick feet and quick, strong, explosive hands. Will often jar defenders with his hand punch. Can bend his knees, sink his hips and play with leverage, and when he does, no one is going to overpower or even push him backward. Can be a devastating drive blocker when he plays with leverage. Was the Longhorns’ co-offensive lineman of the year in 2000 while playing on the same line as Leonard Davis, the No. 2 overall draft pick last year. Williams was the team’s best blocker in 2001. Has Davis-like size and may be an even better athlete.
Negatives: While not a pear-shaped athlete, Williams seems to have a coating of baby fat on his body and is far from being cut; in other words, he doesn’t have the muscular definition of a weightlifter. When he gets too heavy — and he was 375 pounds at the Combine — he tends to play top-heavy and overextend. Tends to get lazy about bending his knees and keeping his pads low and becomes a pusher and shover. When he gets tired, he does not move his feet much and will just use his size and lean on the defender and try to engulf him. While he really likes football, Williams also loves eating, and he must cut down on the latter and spend more time in the weight room and running to realize his nearly unlimited potential. Left tackles are more valuable than right tackles, and while he has a left tackle’s feet and athletic ability, Williams has always been a right tackle, and some players just can’t switch sides, because everything is reversed. Hurt his knee in college early in the 2001 season and may have a little looseness in it.
Summary: Is in the same class with Leonard Davis. Could be a top-five pick if teams are convinced he can move to left tackle after working him out, or a top-10 choice if they are not certain.
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http://archive.profootballweekly.com/content/archives2001/draft_2001/scoutingreports_ol.asp