The New York Jets have a new defensive coordinator in Gregg Williams, and his unique coaching style should translate to the on-field product this season.
This certainly isnāt Gregg Williamsā first rodeo as an NFL defensive coordinator, but the New York Jets defense is getting their first taste of the way he does business.
Williams is a fiery coach who loves to get under the skin of his players, all in hopes of pushing them to be their best and maximize their skills.
Defensive lineman Henry Anderson acknowledges that Williamsā approach is one he hasnāt quite experienced before, but he and his teammates still appear to be enjoying it (via team reporter Ethan Greenberg):
Heās definitely unique. Iāve never had a coach like him before. Itās always fun to start first thing in the morning with a meeting with him. He gets the blood boiling a little bit. Itās fun, though. Sometimes youāre in there in the morning, kind of tired, still waking up and he wakes you up pretty fast. He gets you ready to go out there and practice. He brings a lot of energy, heās passionate, he wants this defense to be great, which is only going to be good for us.
This is Williamsā eighth different stint as an NFL defensive coordinator, and he brings some head coaching experience to the Jets, as well. He served as the defensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns in 2018, and finished the season as the teamās interim head coach following the in-season firing of Hue Jackson.
He inherits a Jets defense loaded with playmakers, including Pro Bowl safety Jamal Adams, four-time Pro Bowl linebacker C.J. Mosley, and a pair of stud defensive lineman in Leonard Williams and No. 3 overall pick Quinnen Williams.
For Anderson, he faces the challenge of adapting to a new scheme and role, despite having a career year for the Jets last season:
Iāve been playing the same sort of technique and now itās a new style of play where Iām having to pretty much tell myself everything that I was doing in the past is not the way to do it anymore. I need to change the way Iām doing it. Itās a good learning process. Weāre definitely not perfect yet, but weāre making big strides every day. Weāve got good energy out there, which is good. Guys are eager to learn and eager to get better.
Thereās enough talent at every level of the Jets defense for this unit to be one of the leagueās best in 2019, and Williams runs an aggressive scheme that loves let playmakers loose. His track record is full of successes as a defensive coordinator, and thereās no reason to expect any different in New York.
While it might be a challenging transition for players like Anderson, in the long run, all parties should benefit from Williamsā presence in 2019 and beyond.
