There is no person lower on the NFL totem poll than a rookie minicamp invitee.
Easily facing the steepest uphill battle of anyone to make a roster, you better find a way to stand out amongst your peers over the three-day weekend.
And for former Pitt Panther Marquis Williams, he did just that:
Williams shows up Danny Smith
“I got up at 4:30 this morning,” Williams told reporters over the weekend. “I told myself all week that I was going to be the first one in the building and the last one to leave. I was in before 5 [a.m.] and got in the hot tub to get my body together. I listened to gospel music to get my mind together and then got some food. I was in coach Danny’s office. I wrote him a sticky note to tell him that I beat him here and put it on his computer. Then I sat there and looked on the board to see things that I could learn and see what advantages I could gain to make this team.”
A smooth move from the local product, Williams' sticky note was sure to both slightly irritate, yet widely excite special teams coordinator Danny Smith with his gesture.
In another heady play, doing that on the special teams coordinator's desk opposed to the defensive coordinator is smart because if Williams makes the team, it will be on special teams.
"I always knew Coach Mike T since my uncle had been playing here,” Williams said. “I’ve been around always with Mike T. It’s been a great friendship. I call him uncle. So it’s definitely great that he knows me, a lot of the staff know me as well. They all got experiences of coaching with Mike T and it’s all family oriented so I definitely adapted very quickly.”
With two spots still available on the 90-man roster, and an organization that isn't afraid to draft or sign players that have ties to the team, Williams may not be done putting on the black and gold.
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