INDIA PARK – After serving as Detroit’s defensive line coach and run game coordinator for 13 seasons, Terrell Williams is returning to the Lions for his 27th season as a coach. Among the most well-liked defensive coordinators in the league is him.
“I’ve been talking to Dan (Campbell) about working together for years,” Williams stated on Tuesday at the Combine. “I made a decision very quickly when this possibility presented itself. It was a difficult talk, but I’m grateful to the Tennessee Titans for letting me out of my contract. They’ve been nice to me over the past six years, and I had intended to continue my relationship with them.
“But the chance to work for this organization and meet Dan, Brad (Holmes), AG (Aaron Glenn), and those people. My spouse also has relatives in Detroit. Next, my son playing hockey. It was more than just hockey, you would suppose. I came to Detroit for a very, very big portion of that.”
At twelve years old, Tahj, the son of Williams, is an excellent young AAA hockey player. Giving Williams the chance to join one of Detroit’s top hockey programs ultimately proved to be a major factor in his decision to move to the city.
Williams has made Tennessee into one of the NFL’s most reliable defensive front units over the past six seasons.
Regarding Williams, Campbell declared, “I believe he’s the best d-line coach in the league.” “I believe he understands how to grow. He is going to help our men up front because he has knowledge with game planning.”
During Williams’ six-year tenure in Tennessee, the Titans allowed the fewest rushing yards per game (76.9) in 2022, the lowest rushing average (4.0), and the fourth-fewest rushing yards (10,044) in the NFL. Jeffery Simmons of the Titans is one of the many young players he has nurtured, and he is excited to work with some of Detroit’s up-and-coming talent up front.
Pro Bowler Aidan Hutchinson and a front that helped Detroit finish with the second-best run defense in the NFL this past season are among the talented young players he will inherit in Detroit.
Williams explained that his approach to trench football is straightforward.
“Aggressive. And that’s it. I’m not going to lecture you for hours on end about how important this or that is. We have to exert ourselves while playing violently,” he remarked. “Part of portraying that role is the violent aspect of it. You want men who acknowledge that. That’s something you have to acknowledge.
“That role is exactly what it is. Playing in this position will be difficult for you if you are unable to exert yourself in such a dramatic high collision situation. Few elite starters that aren’t aggressive players have ever caught my attention. That simply isn’t effective. That is not correlated with it.”
