A healthy Cadillac will be big for the Bucs’ success

By Connor Byrne  |   Tuesday, June 20, 2006  |  Comments( 2 )

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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Last season, Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Carnell Williams proceeded to take the NFL by storm as a rookie. The former Auburn University star was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2005 draft, and he clearly proved he was worth it in last year's campaign.

The only downside to Cadillac Williams' season was the injuries he battled throughout the latter stages of the Bucs' schedule. That was understandable, since he split time in college as a ballcarrier with Miami Dolphins standout Ronnie Brown. Williams wasn't necessarily used to carrying the load in the pros, but he should be ready to go for this season. At least, that's what Tampa's hoping for.

Williams ended up starting in 14 games for the NFC South champions. He finished the year with 1,178 yards on 290 carries, which was good for a 4.1 yards per carry average. To go along with his yardage numbers, Williams crossed the opposing goal-line six times.

On the season, Williams had 10 good to excellent performances and four poor efforts. His weak showings came against the Detroit Lions, New England Patriots, San Francisco 49ers and Washington Redskins. In that quartet of games, Williams carried the ball 48 times for just 76 yards. To put it simply, when Williams struggled last year, he really struggled.

However, when Williams was on his game, he was as brilliant as a back could possibly be. Williams had three outstanding rushing outputs that stood out from the rest in '05. Those efforts actually came in the first trio of games in Williams' career.

The first came in Week One, when he gashed the Minnesota Vikings for 148 yards, including a 71-yard touchdown that clinched a Tampa Bay victory. Williams' next big effort came the following week against the Buffalo Bills, when he bruised their defense for 128 yards. Lastly, he played a brilliant game against the Green Bay Packers, racking up 158 yards on 37 carries.

What makes the 24-year-old Williams such a rare talent in this day and age is his ability to utilize speed against defenses, as well as bruise the opposition. In fact, some of the greatest runners in history have possessed those key traits, such as Earl Campbell, Jim Brown and Walter Payton, among others.

This season, if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers expect to duplicate or improve on their 11-5 mark from last year, they'll need a healthy Cadillac to roll over enemy defenses. Frankly, it would be shocking if the 217-pounder doesn't have a big season, since he's now used to the NFL grind.

Backup Michael Pittman will get some carries, but Williams no longer has to worry about splitting touches with a teammate.

Instead, he'll continue his friendly competition with the Dolphins' Brown to see who ends up having the better pro career. Although Brown was, perhaps, better last season, it's time for Williams to one-up his friend and ex-college teammate.

--Connor J. Byrne can be reached at cbyrne@realfootball365.com

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