San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
TWO GREAT UNKNOWNS HELP RAMS DEFENSE
The Rams are getting expected production from high-priced defensive stars Jalen Ramsey and Aaron Donald, firstround draft picks who have nine Pro Bowl appearances between them and contracts worth a combined $240 million.
The defense also has received major contributions from cornerback Darious Williams and defensive lineman Morgan Fox, both of whom began their NFL careers as undrafted free agents and were released by the Baltimore Ravens and the Rams, respectively, before establishing themselves.
Williams and Fox will be integral parts of the game plan when the Rams play Washington today at Fedex Field.
Williams has two interceptions and Fox has two sacks for a Rams team that is 3-1. Washington is 1-3, and has made a switch at quarterback. Coach Ron Rivera benched second-year pro Dwayne Haskins and will start Kyle Allen. Veteran Alex Smith has been elevated to a backup role.
Williams said he would be ready regardless. And he is not surprised by his success.
“I always knew I was going to be a baller in the league,” Williams said during a videoconference with reporters. “It just depended on who needed me and when they needed me. … I was just waiting on my opportunity.”
Williams, 27, played at Alabama Birmingham and signed with the Ravens in 2018. He played in three games before he was waived and claimed by the Rams. Last season, Williams worked his way into the cornerback rotation, started three games and intercepted two passes.
This season, his end zone interception against the Eagles helped the Rams stave off a rally en route to a 37-19 victory.
The next week, in a last-second defeat against the Bills, Williams was penalized for pass interference on a fourth-down play that gave Buffalo a chance to win on the next play. He said he thought the Bills recognized that he was playing physical throughout the game.
“I think that was really all drawn up in the play call,” Williams said, “Just for him to just get the ball and sling it while I was
jamming him.”
Last Sunday against the Giants, the 5-foot-9, 187-pound Williams intercepted a pass in the final minute to clinch a 17-9 victory.
“He’s got outstanding cover skills,” Rams defensive coordinator Brandon Staley said. “He’s got movement, he’s got deep speed, meaning he can run with these guys that can really get it on the outside.
“He’s a really great leaper. He’s not a tall guy, but he’s got an outstanding vertical jump. He feels bigger than his height and he’s a confident guy. He’s calm.”
Williams, who is earning $750,000 this season, benefits from playing with Ramsey, who signed a five-year, $105-million extension before the season. Because quarterbacks are not eager to challenge Ramsey, Williams and other Rams cornerbacks get more opportunities to make plays.
“That’s just more fun for me,” Williams said. “Like, I’m out there ready to get passes thrown to me, ready to make plays, and that’s all credited to him.”
Said Ramsey: “He makes big plays when the opportunities come his way. He’s stepped up, been able to show the world what he’s capable of, what we all knew he was capable of.”
Fox, 26, played at Colorado State Pueblo and signed with the Rams as an undrafted free agent in 2016. He sat out the 2018 season after undergoing knee surgery and had two sacks last season playing as a rotational player under coordinator Wade Phillips.
The Rams re-signed him to a oneyear, $825,000 contract, and he has played in rotation on a line that features Donald.