5 things to know about Terrell Williams, the Tennessee Titans' acting head coach
Terrell Williams, the Tennessee Titans' defensive line coach and assistant head coach, will act as the head coach for their first preseason game of 2023 against the Bears Saturday in Chicago.
A longtime NFL and college coaching veteran, he will be handling the in-game responsibilities of a head coach, including interacting with trainers, assistant coaches and referees, making down-and-distance decisions and handling substitutions and personnel. Titans coach Mike Vrabel will be on the sideline to assist him if necessary, but Vrabel said he'll mostly coach players on technique.
Here are a few things to know about Williams ahead of his first head coaching opportunity:
Terrell Williams has been around
He has been the Titans' defensive line coach since 2018 and was elevated to assistant head coach as well for 2023. Before the Titans, he spent three years as defensive line coach for the Miami Dolphins (2015-17) and the then-Oakland Raiders (2012-14). He has been the defensive line coach at six colleges, including FBS schools Texas A&M and Purdue.
He has coached plenty of good players
Williams' defensive lines have been stout as long as he has been with the Titans. Led by stalwarts like Jeffery Simmons, Denico Autry and Teair Tart, the Titans have finished top-two in the NFL in rushing defense each of the past two seasons.
Simmons has been named to two All-Pro teams under Williams' tutelage. Additionally, Williams coached defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and defensive end Cameron Wake to All-Pro selections with the Dolphins.
He has a knack for development
Many of Williams' best performers with the Titans, most notably Tart, have been undrafted players. His knack for finding players who aren't highly coveted and turning them into quality NFL starters makes sense, given his college background. In four years at Purdue, Williams coached seven defensive linemen and pass rushers who would go on to play in the NFL.
In his first year at Texas A&M, he inherited future superstar edge rusher Von Miller and helped coach him into being the No. 2 overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft.
He played the position
Williams was a defensive tackle at West Los Angeles College and East Carolina. While at East Carolina, he was a member of the 1995 team that went 9-3 and won the Liberty Bowl, finishing in the top 25 in the coaches poll for just the second time in school history.
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He has a unique opportunity
NFL coaches don't often cede responsibility for preseason games as Vrabel is without there being a medical or family emergency. But giving Williams the opportunity to take reps as a head coach makes some sense as it's generally tough to get promoted from defensive line coach to higher positions.
Only one of the NFL's 32 sitting head coaches were ever even an assistant defensive line coach at the NFL level and only six teams have defensive coordinators with a background coaching defensive linemen.
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on Twitter @nicksuss.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Meet Terrell Williams, Tennessee Titans acting coach for Mike Vrabel
