Duke Williams-" I Can Play If I Stay Out Of Trouble"

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

.....better put on the big boyz' pants lad because this may be your ONLY shot at the NFL.....be smart and good luck.....

Bills’ former CFL star Duke Williams: I can play in the NFL, if I stay out of trouble

Posted by Michael David Smith on May 4, 2019, 8:07 AM EDT

 

Bills wide receiver Duke Williams knows he’s running out of chances as a football player.

 

Williams was kicked off the team at Auburn after a bar brawl that saw him punch four people, but he was able to revive his football career in the Canadian Football League and led the league with 1,579 receiving yards last year. That got the Bills’ attention, and they signed him in January.

 

Williams told the Buffalo News he knows he’s going to have to prove himself off the field just as much as on the field.

 

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2019/05/04/bills-former-cfl-star-duke-williams-i-can-play-in-the-nfl-if-i-stay-out-of-trouble/

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by OldTimeAFLGuy

[Alphadawg7]

I love guys who are talented and hungry with something to prove or a chip on their shoulder.  

 

Duke being hungry like this, self aware of what he needs to do off the field, how he has to earn everything and being honest that it could be his best chance or even last chance at the NFL is great to see.

 

I am excited for the kid and looking forward to seeing him compete to be on this team.

Edited May 4, 2019 by Alphadawg7

[Marv's Neighbor]

Do we sign him or his Mama?  Time for a dose of maturity Duke.

[MrEpsYtown]

5 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said:

I love guys who are talented and hungry with something to prove or a chip on their shoulder.  

 

Duke being hungry like this, self aware of what he needs to do off the field, how he has to earn everything and being honest that it could be his best chance or even last chance at the NFL is great to see.

 

I am excited for the kid and looking forward to seeing him compete to be on this team.

 

According to many on here, apparently having a chip on your shoulder is not a real thing. 

 

But it I agree with you. Duke brings a little something different to that receiver room that needs an edge and some swagger, ala Robert Woods. Both Duke and Sills bring that energy. 

Edited May 4, 2019 by MrEpsYtown

[NewEra]

I’m more excited about him than any of our WR additions.  Not because he’s the best, but because he’s such an unknown.  He could be cut.  He could be our best WR (unlikely, but Robert Foster was our best WR last year and he was cut during the season)

[simpleman]

I don't care about chips or attitude. All I care is can they properly do their assigned tasks in the game, get separation, catch the ball, and extend the play.

[Gugny]

7 minutes ago, Marv's Neighbor said:

Do we sign him or his Mama?  Time for a dose of maturity Duke.

 

Are you confusing him with Lamont Jackson?  I honestly don't get the reference to Duke's mother.

 

Anyway - from the day we signed him, I've been intrigued.  I love that he admits his mistake.  He certainly paid for it.  Count me in as one who would love to see him make the team and have a great career in Buffalo.  

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

Well, if we can keep him clear of Chad Kelly, hockey players named Kane, and copies of ‘Captain Billy’s Whiz Bang’, we should be OK.

[US Egg]

The amount of quality/decent competition for WR and OL this year should produce a serious up grade at those positions.....I hope.

[Maynard]

Hey if he’s getting that now, something has broken through. Good for him. Now prove it.

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

11 minutes ago, MrEpsYtown said:

 

According to many on here, apparently having a chip on your shoulder is not a real thing. 

 

But it I agree with you. Duke brings a little something different to that receiver room that needs an edge and some swagger, ala Robert Woods. Both Duke and Sills bring that energy. 

 

 

....if the guys mans up about his eff ups and understands that this is probably his LAST chance, show up big time....revisiting Richie for a moment......he was a camp cramp and menace for the Rams and Bflo took a chance......he did perform for one year and wanted the "hell outta Dodge"......after the Miami fiasco and being unofficially blackballed for a year, the ONLY team to step up, despite him wanting to leave pronto previously, was Bflo......sure as hell paid dividends for 3 years......so maybe this kid gets "IT" as Richie got "IT" at the "Last Chance Saloon"...I'll take 2-3 years of similar production from Duke.....stay tuned........

Edited May 4, 2019 by OldTimeAFLGuy

[JinxedBill1]

[The Wiz]

7 minutes ago, Ridgewaycynic2013 said:

Well, if we can keep him clear of Chad Kelly, hockey players named Kane, and copies of ‘Captain Billy’s Whiz Bang’, we should be OK.

Mongolian BBQ also. 

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

Just now, HOUSE said:

Should have traded for Tyreek Hill.

 

 

 

....he's the MMA guy right?....

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

Just now, JinxedBill1 said:

Which version is that one?  He’s got ‘Runaway Bride’ eyes!

[HOUSE]

. "But at the end of the day, they know what type of guy I am. Me punching four people in a bar — that’s not me."

 

We need to clear this up, lets find this other guy

 

 

..

Edited May 4, 2019 by HOUSE

[Formerly Allan in MD]

18 minutes ago, simpleman said:

I don't care about chips or attitude. All I care is can they properly do their assigned tasks in the game, get separation, catch the ball, and extend the play.

How about if his chips and attitude get him in trouble outside the stadium, even if he's religiously doing his assigned tasks in games?

[The Wiz]

6 minutes ago, HOUSE said:

. "But at the end of the day, they know what type of guy I am. Me punching four people in a bar — that’s not me."

 

We need to clear this up, lets find this other guy

 

 

..

It wasn't until he punched the fourth guy that he started to question if that's the type of person he is or not. 

[HOUSE]

1 hour ago, The Wiz said:

It wasn't until he punched the fourth guy that he started to question if that's the type of person he is or not. 

 

Could have been a set up. Some other guy punched 4 people then ran ...

[Hapless Bills Fan]

28 minutes ago, Gugny said:

 

Are you confusing him with Lamont Jackson?  I honestly don't get the reference to Duke's mother.

 

Anyway - from the day we signed him, I've been intrigued.  I love that he admits his mistake.  He certainly paid for it.  Count me in as one who would love to see him make the team and have a great career in Buffalo.  

 

Just a note here that it was not "a mistake".  He was disciplined several times by Auburn including being inactive during a bowl game and being suspended, before he was kicked off for his 3rd strike.

 

I hope he's turned himself around and works out for us, and for his own sake.  But he was signed to a 3 yr deal by the LA Rams as an UDFA after what would have been his Sr year and given a shot,  and couldn't stick with the team.  The 2016 Rams were not a team overflowing with WR talent at the time, though they may have thought they had more than they did - the point is, he was out-competed by the likes of Pharoh Cooper and Brian Quick not to mention Tavon Austin.  Whether that was on the field or for off-field/meeting room factors can't tell ya.

 

 

 

[BuffaloRebound]

Gotta be more than punching 4 people in a bar who aren’t women or children for a big time program like Auburn to drop him unless he wasn’t very good.  

[HOUSE]

1 hour ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

Just a note here that it was not "a mistake".  He was disciplined several times by Auburn including being inactive during a bowl game and being suspended, before he was kicked off.

 

I hope he's turned himself around and works out for us, and for his own sake.

 

 

If the competition is even, the guy with past history will lose. 

[Ralonzo]

15 minutes ago, HOUSE said:

. "But at the end of the day, they know what type of guy I am. Me punching four people in a bar — that’s not me."

 

We need to clear this up, lets find this other guy

 

Got him

 

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

17 minutes ago, HOUSE said:

. "But at the end of the day, they know what type of guy I am. Me punching four people in a bar — that’s not me."

 

We need to clear this up, lets find this other guy

 

 

..

Uh oh...getting close to referring to himself in the ‘third person’?

[Hapless Bills Fan]

7 minutes ago, BuffaloRebound said:

Gotta be more than punching 4 people in a bar who aren’t women or children for a big time program like Auburn to drop him unless he wasn’t very good.  

 

It was.  3rd strike.  And one of the people he punched was a teammate, who was injured.  Reports at the time was that the teammate threatened to press charges unless Williams was dismissed. 

 

He had previously been disciplined twice, once by benching during a bowl game (when he had been Auburn's leading WR that season) and once pre-season.

[NoSaint]

13 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

Just a note here that it was not "a mistake".  He was disciplined several times by Auburn including being inactive during a bowl game and being suspended, before he was kicked off for his 3rd strike.

 

I hope he's turned himself around and works out for us, and for his own sake.  But he was signed to a 3 yr deal by the LA Rams as an UDFA after what would have been his Sr year and given a shot,  and couldn't stick with the team.  The 2016 Rams were not a team overflowing with WR talent at the time, though they may have thought they had more than they did - the point is, he was out-competed by the likes of Pharoh Cooper and Brian Quick not to mention Tavon Austin.  Whether that was on the field or for off-field/meeting room factors can't tell ya.

 

 

 

 

Hes a huuuuuge long shot, but I’m down to have a lottery ticket or 2 in the 90 man roster. 

 

For productive discussion around here though, fans need to plan their finances with him as a lottery ticket and not a weekly paycheck though.

Edited May 4, 2019 by NoSaint

[HOUSE]

1 hour ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

It was.  3rd strike.  And one of the people he punched was a teammate, who was injured.

This should be a red flag  ?

[Gugny]

13 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

Just a note here that it was not "a mistake".  He was disciplined several times by Auburn including being inactive during a bowl game and being suspended, before he was kicked off for his 3rd strike.

 

I hope he's turned himself around and works out for us, and for his own sake.  But he was signed to a 3 yr deal by the LA Rams as an UDFA after what would have been his Sr year and given a shot,  and couldn't stick with the team.  The 2016 Rams were not a team overflowing with WR talent at the time, though they may have thought they had more than they did - the point is, he was out-competed by the likes of Pharoh Cooper and Brian Quick not to mention Tavon Austin.  Whether that was on the field or for off-field/meeting room factors can't tell ya.

 

 

 

 

Great info, thanks.  Normally, I'd be against bringing someone in with so many red flags.  I don't know what it is about this kid that has me in his corner.  But I am.  It would be a great story if he ends up with a sustained NFL career.  I guess we shall see.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

4 minutes ago, Gugny said:

 

Great info, thanks.  Normally, I'd be against bringing someone in with so many red flags.  I don't know what it is about this kid that has me in his corner.  But I am.  It would be a great story if he ends up with a sustained NFL career.  I guess we shall see.

 

He avoided discipline issues and performed very well in the CFL for 2 seasons. 
 

Like many a college star athlete, he was apparently infected with "BMOC" syndrome and let his taste of celebrity lead to entitlement.    A couple years in the wastelands of Edmonton could have been curative.

[Phil The Thrill]

He’s a different type of receiver than the Bills have on the roster being a taller and physically receiver.  He has talent and I hope he sticks with the team 

[Rocket94]

50 minutes ago, NewEra said:

I’m more excited about him than any of our WR additions.  Not because he’s the best, but because he’s such an unknown.  He could be cut.  He could be our best WR (unlikely, but Robert Foster was our best WR last year and he was cut during the season)

Same here. He has been left out of WR talk...like a non-entity. Interesting dark horse.

[ColoradoBills]

What confuses me is I thought Beane and McDermott only want choir boys?

 

Maybe he is a good tenor.

[Mojo44]

I am glad to hear that the incident is in the past and he seems to have turned it around. However, I find the fact that he made the statement somewhat ominous.

[billsfan1959]

As far as I know, he hasn't had any off the field issues since he left Auburn. Hopefully, he turns out to be a good pick up.

[Lurker]

2 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

He avoided discipline issues and performed very well in the CFL for 2 seasons. 

 

More like one year.   This is a guy who was dropped by Auburn, failed miserably as an UDFA with the Rams and came into his first training camp in the CFL unprepaired?   What kind of 5-watt light does he have burning upstairs??

 

https://buffalonews.com/2019/05/04/buffalo-bills-josh-allen-brandon-beane-nfl-draft-vic-carucci-football/

 

"...Early in his first training camp with the Eskimos, one night after mandatory practices and meetings, Reilly hosted a players-only walkthrough on the field.

 

Reilly was the franchise quarterback, a two-time Grey Cup champion on the way to being named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player of 2017. He’s since become the third quarterback in league history to throw for more than 5,000 yards in three consecutive seasons, joining Anthony Cavillo and Doug Flutie.

 

Reilly commanded respect. And he didn’t think twice about holding Williams to account.

 

“We were going through some of our no-huddle hand signals,” Reilly recalled, “and I noticed he wasn’t really paying attention how I wanted him to, and so I called him out in front of everybody and asked him what the previous play was and what his route was on it and all that stuff, and he didn’t have an answer for me.”

 

Williams stammered and tried to guess.

 

“And he’s like, ‘Nah, you wrong,’ ” Williams remembered. “He was like, ‘You ain’t going to be here long doing that. This is our job. We feed our families with this.’

 

-------------------------------------------------

 

Williams caught 46 passes for 715 yards and four touchdowns in 13 games that season, but once he caught a couple of deep balls, defensive coordinators began to game plan against him, all but eliminating that aspect of his game.

 

Williams' limited repertoire became apparent, as did his poor conditioning. He surpassed 100 receiving yards in four of his first seven games, and then never again down the stretch.

 

Williams’ playing time decreased, along with his productivity, as more capable teammates returned from injuries.  Williams recorded no stats in the team’s final five games, all victories until a playoff loss to the Calgary Stampeders in the West Final.

 

[Rocket94]

11 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

He avoided discipline issues and performed very well in the CFL for 2 seasons. 
 

Like many a college star athlete, he was apparently infected with "BMOC" syndrome and let his taste of celebrity lead to entitlement.    A couple years in the wastelands of Edmonton could have been curative.

I hope he does well. If he has matured, we could use his toughness.

[TroutDog]

His back story is worth looking up. He came from a town on Florida that is basically Hell. 

[BuffaloBill]

26 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

It was.  3rd strike.  And one of the people he punched was a teammate, who was injured.  Reports at the time was that the teammate threatened to press charges unless Williams was dismissed. 

 

He had previously been disciplined twice, once by benching during a bowl game (when he had been Auburn's leading WR that season) and once pre-season.

 

 

Let’s hope he’s learned and isn’t a simmering Richie Incognito.  I know, very different situations as Incognito likely has a mental health issue(s) not just an anger management one. 

[Bangarang]

28 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

It was.  3rd strike.  And one of the people he punched was a teammate, who was injured.  Reports at the time was that the teammate threatened to press charges unless Williams was dismissed. 

 

He had previously been disciplined twice, once by benching during a bowl game (when he had been Auburn's leading WR that season) and once pre-season.

 

Sounds like Jerry Hughes found someone to fight at training camp now that Mills is gone.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

9 minutes ago, Lurker said:

 

More like one year.   This is a guy who was dropped by Auburn, failed miserably as an UDFA with the Rams and came into his first training camp in the CFL unprepaired?   What kind of 5-watt light does he have burning upstairs??

 

https://buffalonews.com/2019/05/04/buffalo-bills-josh-allen-brandon-beane-nfl-draft-vic-carucci-football/

 

"...Early in his first training camp with the Eskimos, one night after mandatory practices and meetings, Reilly hosted a players-only walkthrough on the field.

 

Reilly was the franchise quarterback, a two-time Grey Cup champion on the way to being named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player of 2017. He’s since become the third quarterback in league history to throw for more than 5,000 yards in three consecutive seasons, joining Anthony Cavillo and Doug Flutie.

 

Reilly commanded respect. And he didn’t think twice about holding Williams to account.

 

“We were going through some of our no-huddle hand signals,” Reilly recalled, “and I noticed he wasn’t really paying attention how I wanted him to, and so I called him out in front of everybody and asked him what the previous play was and what his route was on it and all that stuff, and he didn’t have an answer for me.”

 

Williams stammered and tried to guess.

 

“And he’s like, ‘Nah, you wrong,’ ” Williams remembered. “He was like, ‘You ain’t going to be here long doing that. This is our job. We feed our families with this.’

 

-------------------------------------------------

 

Williams caught 46 passes for 715 yards and four touchdowns in 13 games that season, but once he caught a couple of deep balls, defensive coordinators began to game plan against him, all but eliminating that aspect of his game.

 

Williams' limited repertoire became apparent, as did his poor conditioning. He surpassed 100 receiving yards in four of his first seven games, and then never again down the stretch.

 

Williams’ playing time decreased, along with his productivity, as more capable teammates returned from injuries.  Williams recorded no stats in the team’s final five games, all victories until a playoff loss to the Calgary Stampeders in the West Final.

 

 

Correction accepted on the "played well 2 seasons"

I would personally take 46 receptions for 715 yds; that would have had him leading the Bills for receiving yds last year.

 

But yeah, big question is whether he's really gotten the clue that he needs all his focus and effort to make it in the NFL

The sheer physical talent levels are too similar to get by while mentally slacking.