The Pittsburgh Steelers have a rich history of late-round draft picks and undrafted free agents turning into fantastic players. They have found starters, Pro Bowlers, Defensive Players of the Year, and even Hall of Famers throughout the years who were not even considered mid-round draft picks by the rest of the NFL. Most of those players got their start in Pittsburgh on special teams and the recently retired Vince Williams is just another example of that unique Steelers fraternity.
Williams appeared on The Ramon Foster Show on the DKPittsburgh Sports Network and told his former teammate how he viewed his time on the special teams unit and the opportunity it presented to him to contribute to the Steelers during his first few seasons with the Steelers:
“My second year when they drafted Ryan [Shazier], I didn’t say it humbled me,” Williams said. “It just showed me like, yo, you still have to have a level of usefulness and you got to figure this out. I used to scream all the time during training camp that somebody’s gonna be coaching PE at the end of training camp, telling all their family and friends it’s a numbers game so I gotta figure it out.”
Williams started 11 games as a rookie, but saw the team select Ryan Shazier in the first round of the following draft to pair with Lawrence Timmons. Instead of sulking, Williams set out to make himself too valuable to cut and that meant finding a home on special teams.
“I was paid in my value role,” Williams continued. “Once I became a special teams player, I became the best special teams player. Ramon, it was just another opportunity to rise and it’s all football. Regardless of whatever your capacity is work and do it to the best of your abilities.”
The former starter became a dominant special teams player for Pittsburgh and immediately made an impact in coverage. He was not one of the gunners, but was consistently leading the special teams at the point of attack. Williams was a reliable tackler and stood out whenever he stepped on the field for the Steelers. He credited Danny Smith with setting the tone when he first reported to the unit:
“There is a value there and Danny Smith used to tell us,” Williams concluded. “Hey, I know you want to be the starting linebacker. I want to be the head coach, but guess what you’re not and I’m not so we better take care of our jobs right here so we can continue to feed our kids.”
Williams spent three seasons on special teams and did not make it back to the starting lineup until 2017. He played so well during his time with the unit that he forced the Steelers to keep him on the roster long enough for him to earn his way back into the starting lineup. After the 2017 season, he signed a four-year extension for $20 million dollars and solidified himself as a key member of the defense and a role as one of the starting inside linebackers.
Steelers Former Linebacker Vince Williams Says That Football Was Just Monetary After His Friend Ryan Shazier's Tragic Injury
Williams did not quite finish out the four-year contract. After three seasons, the Steelers released him in a cost-cutting move and then re-signed him to a one-year deal. Williams revealed in the podcast that after the Shazier injury in 2017 that football became monetary for him and after losing $4 million dollars in salary, he had torn his quad muscle twice the previous season and decided abruptly that he did not have the desire to continue playing.
The Steelers have not been able to replace the role that Williams filled since his abrupt retirement and the entire defense has suffered. They finished last against the run in 2021 and only improved modestly this past season at the position with the addition of Myles Jack and the improved play of Robert Spillane. Draft experts are predicting they will probably address the position with one of their five picks in the first four rounds of the upcoming NFL Draft.
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