Since there seems to be some concern about Connor Williams' play against Cincy, I thought I'd go back and focus solely on him in that game.
First drive
First and 10: Two-yard run to the left. Williams double-teams the DE with Tyron and they knock him back off the line of scrimmage. Smith peels off and the DE spins to the inside to escape Williams, but the play is already made. If it had not been, the initial block was effective enough that Smith would have had room to run to the left of Williams. Looney's DT actually threw him off and made the tackle, but Martin got knocked back into the backfield as well. GOOD ENOUGH
Second and 8: Williams was driven back into Prescott on the snap.The only good that can be said about this rep is that Williams at least stayed in front of Atkins long enough for Dak to throw a short completion to Jarwin. BAD
Third and 3: A linebacker charges Williams, who easily stops his charge and knocks him sideways on a quick slant to Gallup. GOOD
First and 10: Williams can't get fully in front of the DT going right and is powered past as his man is the first to hit Smith in the backfield on a 1-yard run. BAD
Second and 9: Williams and Looney double the DT before Looney peels off to assist Martin. All three are pushed back but not enough to disrupt the incomplete pass. Williams' man was starting to rip free to loop around the scrum, but it was too late. GOOD ENOUGH
Third and 9: Williams and Smith double-team Atkins, who goes nowhere. The DE tries to loop inside, but Williams cuts him off with help from Looney. However, a free blitzer came from the outside forcing a quick throw to Hurns for 3 yards. GOOD
Next drive
First and 10: Williams handles the DT with a little assistance from Looney, who also assists Martin. Williams keeps the DT from turning in toward Dak and simply carries him upfield on the completion to Swaim. GOOD
Second and 2: Williams pulls left on a sweep and pins the safety toward the sideline. He had the play blocked for Smith to have a much bigger run than 4 yards, but Martin was also pulling and couldn't get around Swaim's block on the DE to get to the linebacker who made the play. It looked like Swaim's defender grabbed Martin. GOOD
First and 10: Straight power run for 2 yards behind right guard as Williams and Smith teammed up on a DT before Williams tried to peel off and get a linebacker. It was hard to tell who made the play as the line collapsed behind Williams. I think the DT both Williams and Smith initially blocked was in on the play. NEUTRAL to BAD (I can't tell exactly.)
Second and 8: Quick toss to Smith. Williams pushes the DT to his left with the throw going back to the right, so this was a pretty easy block because he didn't have to maintain it. GOOD
First and 10: Double-team with Looney gives Dak enough time, but he can't find anyone immediately and scrambles to his left as the blockers give ground. The DT spins away from Williams to give chase as Dak throws too high for Jarwin. Dak was flushed by some pressure coming from Collins' man, but the protection was good enough. GOOD
Second and 10: Williams got off the ball fast (at first I thought he had false started) to pin the DT to the inside on a run behind him. The DT tried to spin away, and got back around to where the play was made, but the block was good enough if Looney's had been. Instead, it was stopped for a 2-yard gain. GOOD ENOUGH
Third and 8: Williams and Looney doubled the DT, stopping any push up the middle. The DT then looped around the outside, running Williams into Smith. Williams recovered to stop the DT's charge before he got to Prescott, but Dak got rid of the ball, throwing it through the back of the end zone. BAD, even though Williams recovered well
Final drive:
First and 10: On a 2-yard run off left tackle, Williams blocked the tackle out of the play, but didn't get much push to remove him from the hole. It's possible that Williams not rooting out the DT led to Smith having nowhere to run, allowing the scrum to collapse on him, but I can't tell. Possibly GOOD ENOUGH
Second and 8: The DT (Atkins) threw aside Williams but Looney was there to help. The interior were being pushed back into Dak's lap, but it was a quick drop and pass to Williams. BAD
First and 10: Fake run to the left and Dak rolls right to throw an incompletion. Williams absolutely shoved his man (I believe it was a DE) back like he was drive blocking, but it was partly because the player had seen the rollout. GOOD
Second and 10: Williams and Smith double Atkins as he fires into the line. The stop him and along with Looney form a wall blocking off the DE and two DTs as Smith cuts behind them for a 4-yard gain. GOOD
Third and 6: Williams carries Atkins past the pocket as he charges upfield. Looney was looking to help but it happened so fast that all he could do was chase. Great job of Williams using Atkins' momentum against him on a completion to Hurns. GOOD
First and 10: The DT swims right over the top of Williams, forcing Dak to make the DT dance long enough to fire a pass to Swaim. REALLY BAD
Second and 2: Williams comes off a quick double with Looney to get on a linebacker and bearhug him as Smith races by on a long run. GOOD, but might could have been called holding
First and 10: Williams pulls left and pins a linebacker to the outside and Smith runs to his inside for six yards. GOOD
Second and 4: Pitch left. Williams is out in front and takes over blocking Gallup's man, keeping him out of the play that is made behind Williams after a 3-yard run by a DT that Looney didn't hold up long enough. GOOD ENOUGH
Third and 1: Williams and Smith initially double a DT, then Williams peels off quickly to knock a linebacker back on a power run straight up the gut for 2 yards. GOOD
First and 10: Much like the second play of the game (but a little better because he was able to delay the DT a little), Williams is driven back by power into Dak's lap as he throws too long for a well-covered Jarwin. BAD
Second and 10: Williams tried to chop the DT, which delayed him well enough that he wasn't involved in a 7-yard run to the right. GOOD
Third and 3: Williams and Looney team up to absorb Atkins' rush well enough on a quick throw to Gallup. GOOD
First and goal: Williams goes with Atkins' momentum to the left on a run up the middle, but Atkins pushes Williams off him and helps to make the stop on a 1-yard run. (Not completely Williams' fault, though, because Edwards had allowed penetration that slowed the play.) BAD
Second and goal: Williams and Looney doubled to completely stop the DT's rush, but Dak was flushed by a unblocked defender and ran for a yard to his right. GOOD
Third and goal: Williams stopped Atkins from getting penetration, but it almost looked like Atkins wasn't trying and was spying Dak. As Dak flushed to his left, Williams had hold of Atkins well enough that he couldn't pull away quick enough to pressure Dak before he threw the TD pass. It probably was a hold but not enough of one to be called. GOOD
You're a defensive coor game planning against the best OL in the league. You can guess the likely target for a mismatch. I'm not down on the kid for this game but what concerns me is we've seen free agents in practice expose his lack if strength during one-on-one drills. Not saying he won't be a good player. Just not sure if he's ready to play LG in NFL at a high level.
