Marcus Williams Takes Shot at Ravens After Release

As the Baltimore Ravens' secondary floundered throughout the first half of the 2024 season, no one took more heat than veteran safety Marcus Williams.

Williams, 28, had by far the worst season of his eight-year career in 2024. According to Pro Football Focus, he allowed 14 receptions for 247 yards and three touchdowns when targeted, good for a perfect passer rating of 158.3. He was eventually benched in favor of Ar'Darius Washington, and the Ravens' defense improved significantly after that change.

In March, the Ravens released Williams just three years after he signed a five-year, $70 million contract as a free agent.

During an interview with former New Orleans Saints teammate Terron Armstead, Williams admitted that "there's a lot of stuff on my side I could've done better." However, he also believes the Ravens didn't put him in a situation to succeed.

“To be frank, it was just a lot of miscommunication from the top down,” Williams said. “I take accountability for whatever action that I did that they didn’t like. But I didn’t know what actions those were. But I take accountability for maybe missed opportunities, maybe missed plays that I could’ve done better on. But, as far as the communication from the top down, I feel like it could’ve been better.”

Williams especially took issue with how the Ravens handled his two benchings. The first came in Week 8 against the Cleveland Browns, while the second came after a dismal performance against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 10, which pretty much ended his season. He said those benchings "didn't make sense to me."

“They could’ve communicated properly and effectively so that there was no missed communication when the switch was gonna occur,” Williams said. “I mean, I’ve played football for a long time. You don’t just get bad overnight. And most people on the outside will believe that plays that were given up may have been on me, but they don’t really know the depths of the coverage or what we were actually running, what we were told. They don’t really know, but as a safety, my responsibility is to do whatever I can to show up in the [television] screen and maybe, possibly make a play.”

Despite his grievances with the Ravens, Williams, who is still a free agent, still showed appreciation for the team and fan base.

“I appreciate all the fans,” Williams said. “I appreciate the coaches. I appreciate them giving me that opportunity. I appreciate them blessing me. It’s a blessing to be able to play for the Ravens, a great organization. Many greats have come through there, and I’m very appreciative of them. I mean, they blessed me and my family, and I wouldn’t change doing any of that for the world because, ultimately, I got paid.