There was a bit of a scare on Thursday in Berea, where the Cleveland Browns were practicing. Linebacker Quincy Williams, who had been among the defense’s best players over the past three weeks, was not on the practice field and was listed as out of practice with a neck injury. It was not an injury that had cropped up before and defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg offered no explanation of what might be going on with Williams.
When he was asked, Rutenberg said, “I’m going to leave all that to Monk (Todd Monken), obviously, so I’ll just leave it at that.”
Monken was not addressing the media on Thursday, so there was no further explanation about what was going on with Williams. But then came Friday’s practice, and a sigh of relief: Williams was back on the practice field for the Browns and presumably will be good to go on Sunday in Tennessee.
Quincy Williams Among NFL’s Top Linebackers
Generally speaking, things are trending in the right direction for the team on the injury front, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Linebacker Carson Schwesinger has been fighting through his ankle injury and defensive tackle Mason Graham has been back at practice since last Friday. Both are looking as though they will play–Schwesinger has not missed a game this year, and Graham has been out the past two weeks with a sprained MCL in his knee. Now, the problem with Williams appears to have been dodged.
Williams, brought in as a free agent this offseason to play alongside Schwesinger at linebacker, had a slow start to the season but now, he and Schwesinger have emerged as one of the best linebacker duos in the league. Williams has 40 tackles thus far this season, and is leading the NFL with three forced fumbles, all of which came against his old team, the Jets. He also has a sack and three quarterback hits this season, two of which came last week against the Ravens.
Pro Football Focus rates him as the No. 5 linebacker in the NFL, and Schwesinger as No. 18 out of 75. The Chiefs are the only other team in the AFC with two linebackers rated in the Top 20.
Browns Not Surprise by Carson Schwesinger
On Thursday at Browns practice, Rutenberg–who was linebackers coach with the Jets when Williams as there–was asked if he has been surprised by anything in his first season working with Schwesinger, the reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year Award winner.
He said: “It doesn’t surprise any of us. The way he works, the way he prepares, and the way he shows up for his teammates, it’s unbelievable. Everybody will celebrate the great forced fumble, obviously, but his preparation through the week, the way he runs the defense, the way he attacks his job is unbelievable. And it’s because he does it for his brothers and his team, and then he’s rewarded for it by the way he plays. But that’s all because of what he does in the week, and nobody doubts that.”
Browns Get Good News on Injured Star Before Week 7