Dallas Cowboys' Williams working to change pattern
10:44 AM CDT on Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Roy Williams doesn't wear No. 4 in these off-season workouts to simply remind everyone else of the player he was in college.
He does it to remind himself.
He does it to declare the receiver seen with the Cowboys in 2008 is not the receiver that will be seen this season.
Other than quarterback Tony Romo, no player on this roster has more pressure to succeed than Williams. The former UT star doesn't shy away from these expectations, but he shouldn't bear the brunt by himself.
Jerry Jones is the one who gave up picks in the first, third and sixth rounds to acquire Williams from Detroit seven months ago. He's the one who signed the receiver to a $45 million extension, then jettisoned Terrell Owens.
If Williams doesn't perform to the Pro Bowl level he did three years ago, Jones' judgment will come under fire as much as Williams' performance.
We are months away from seeing this play out. As the Cowboys begin their second week of organized team activities, Williams is more concerned with laying the groundwork for a productive season and building a rapport with Romo.
"He finally gets to see me, see what I can do, instead of not looking for me because he doesn't trust me," Williams said. "That's where that trust comes in.
"We're getting there. I'm not saying it's all the way there. He's still learning me and I'm still learning him. It's a long journey."
Trust was in short supply after the trade. Williams caught 19 passes for 198 yards and one touchdown with the Cowboys in 10 games. To call him an afterthought would be misleading, since the Cowboys appeared to give him no thought at all in many games.
There has been an emphasis this off-season to form a connection between the two. Romo has thrown to Williams 20 to 30 minutes a day for an average of four days a week since March 2. Romo praised Williams for his hard work and route running after the team's first OTA last week.
"I don't know what other people think or what they are saying, but the guy's got all the talent in the world, and he wants to do it, so I think he's going to really do well for us," coach Wade Phillips said. "I don't have any doubt that he can play and be a big-time player. He's already done that."
The level of trust Williams strives to achieve with Romo is what he enjoyed in Detroit with Jon Kitna. That doesn't mean it will be easy to replicate now that Kitna is on the Cowboys roster.
"This ain't Detroit," Williams said. "Me and Tony have to get our own bond. We can't have the same bond me and Kit had.
"I talk to him [Romo] more, he talks to me more. Last year, we didn't really talk. We didn't know each other. I was afraid to cross that boundary, and I guess he was afraid to cross my boundary.
"Now we're talking. We're friends. We're co-workers."
Jones has overvalued receivers before. Two first-round picks for Joey Galloway leaps to mind.
Galloway had some nice seasons. Too bad they came after his lackluster time in Dallas was over. Jones needs Williams to leave a different legacy.
Pressure?
"Not at all," Williams said. "I'm approaching the season the way I always do.
"It's a fun game. If you don't love it, then you can't play."
Roy Williams can play.
It's just that he has to play a lot better than he did last season for this deal to pay dividends.
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