Quincy Williams and his teammates returned to the practice field on Tuesday and the Jets' All-Pro linebacker said they're all champing at the bit ahead of Monday night's regular-season opener at San Francisco.
"It didn't look like we had a couple of days off," Williams told reporters. "You know, some people, when they come back from a long weekend, you got to get the wheels and stuff running, get the oil and stuff changing, stuff like that. But, man, we came out running the blaze in the day. Everyone's excited. Hey, man, it's one of those games."
That Week 1 game presents the Jets with a significant challenge, traveling cross-country to face the defending NFC champion 49ers in a nationally televised game that will again train the spotlight on the Green & White and their four-time MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Yet, for Williams and the Jets' elite defense the preparations for playing against an offense that includes QB Brock Purdy, all-purpose back Christian McCaffrey & Co. take on a new wrinkle without fresh film to dissect.
"The difference is you don't have a clue," Williams said. "They didn't have all season to prepare. They didn't have all season to draw some stuff up. They had all offseason to play [EA Sports'] Madden [NFL videogame] and NCAA [College Football video game]. They probably learned some plays on NCAA, so [there's] no telling what's going come out Game 1.
"So that's one of those things where you, like I said, you fall back on yourself. You fall back on your own fundamentals, you fall back on your own communication. You fall back on that hey, I trust my brother. If you see something going on, he's going to say something like, 'hey, watch this right here.' And I'm like, 'alright, bet, we're all on the same page.' So we're all on the same page, no matter what they line up in, or no matter what route combination we run. We're good, because we're all on the same page. It's one of those things where we call it 'combat patience,' and then when the ball hikes, 'combat violence.'"
Entering his fourth season with the Jets, the older brother of DT Quinnen Williams is one of the prime examples of GM Joe Douglas' keen eye for talent. He signed with the Jets after being cut by Jacksonville after two seasons. Over his three seasons in green and white, Quincy Williams has played in 48 games (44 starts), amassed 355 tackles (242 solo), 36 TFL and 7 sacks. With his speed on the outside, he has matured into an able complement to MLB C.J. Mosley. Last season, Williams had a career high 139 tackles, second to only Mosley's 151, while also taking 1,093 defensive snaps (96%).
As he prepared during training camp to face the 49ers and expecting to have to deal with McCaffrey, Williams and RB Breece Hall spent extra time after practice as the linebacker tried to prepare.
"He's one of those running backs, he's dynamic, low to the ground, so he has good balance recovery," Williams said of McCaffrey. "So he's one of those guys where when you tackle him, you've got to make sure you take the extra step, wrap up with him. Also, he's effective in the pass game. For me, going against Breece Hall and our running backs has been preparing me for Christian McCaffrey. The main thing, because just like Breece, he's out in the backfield, fast, great lateral movement. So those choice routes and things like that we will be playing that. And then also, Christian McCaffrey is one of those guys where he lines up on many parts of the field. So, you've just got to be ready to just know where he is."
So after an offseason of OTA, minicamp, training camp and a strict sideline view during the three preseason games, Williams said he's ready
"Game week time," he said. "It feels good, it's a lot of energy."
Williams added: "Just excited to get out there and celebrate. And celebrate with my guys and then also get some live reps. For real, for real."
