Coach Mike Vrabel's New England Patriots 5-4 and in Munich, Germany to take on Dan Campbell's 6-2 Detroit Lions in a game with major playoff implications as AJ Brown and Rhamondre Stevenson got key health updates. The Patriots' offense came into focus while defensive tackle Milton Williams made a surprising pledge aimed at improving his team's defense.
Ari Meirov shared Williams' comments as he vented frustrations to the media.
“We want to get teams in third-and-five-plus situations so we can go out there and rush. Jumping offsides is just giving them third-and-shorts so we can't rush the passer. I mean, cuz I had a couple early in the season, and I feel like, we talked about it, but there's not enough consequences that come with it, other than hurting the team.”
Williams has plenty of funds to follow through with his offer as he signed a four-year, $104 million contract with New England in 2025. Williams has 21 tackles and a sack this season on a Patriots defense that has been led by linebacker Christian Elliss in tackles with 65. Linebacker Elijah Ponder leads in sacks with 7.5 going up against a powerful Detroit offense led by rising star offensive coordinator Drew Petzing, QB Jared Goff and all-everything running back Jahmyr Gibbs.
The Patriots' Drake Maye, who called out a clueless reporter over Stevenson, will have his hands full attempting to outscore the Lions as injury troubles continue.
Williams' call-out comes at a much-needed time as New England needs a little extra juice to beat one of the NFL's best teams near the mid-way point of the season.