Fitting Williams to a 'D'

An intense style has helped Gregg Williams turn around the Redskins' defense -- and made him a target of teams looking for a head coach. (By Jonathan Newton -- The Washington Post)

He has strong ties to Missouri -- where jobs in St. Louis, currently under an interim coach, and Kansas City could be available -- as well as Houston, where his coaching career began, where his children were born, and where Coach Dom Capers is all but ensured of being fired. Williams could be comfortable living in any of those areas he is already familiar with. Like the Rams, the Chiefs have a talented offense but need defensive help, and both organizations have been playoff regulars.

Those who know Williams well say he views all three franchises favorably and believes they are dedicated to winning; league sources said Houston and St. Louis already view him as a quality candidate, while Kansas City waits to learn whether Coach Dick Vermeil will retire. "When I looked at the film after the [Dec. 18] Dallas game, I said to myself, 'He's gone,' " cornerback Shawn Springs said. "That's not to say I wanted him to leave, but when you look at a team like St. Louis, don't you think they could use him? Don't you think they're thinking how much he could help them? Look at their offense, and look at what he could do with their defense. A team like that would love to have him. They'd be crazy not to."

Williams is a former high school star quarterback and prep coach in Excelsior Springs, Mo., 30 minutes from Kansas City, played at Northwest Missouri State and speaks glowingly of those times. Williams also has an affinity for Houston, beginning his college coaching career there and his NFL career as well. His wife, Leigh Ann, was an operations manager for a gas processing company there and the prospect of returning that city's football fans to glory would be special for him as well.

The proposition of going home -- or close to it -- is not lost on Williams, and when asked if particular jobs would "tug at his heartstrings," he nodded and said: "Sure, that's true. There are definitely certain things that would be intriguing, but it's got to be the right situation."

Looking for the Right Fit

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The chances of such a perfect combination of location, organization, personnel and autonomy appear greater than ever, and a team source said at least five organizations have attempted to gauge Williams's interest. At least one club hired a firm to conduct research on its behalf, league sources said, contacting former coaches and players under Williams.

"I don't think there's any doubt he'll get interviews," said one AFC team executive who declined to comment at least in part because of his club's potential coaching search. "He's clearly a good defensive coordinator, very organized and a hard worker and very demanding of the players -- he's taken on [Pro Bowl linebacker LaVar] Arrington head on there, so there's no questions about that.

"I think the issues in Buffalo were staff. He hired some of his friends and from what we have gathered he did not have a good staff there. How much of that was him? How much was salary constraints? How much of it was [Buffalo General Manager] Tom Donahoe? He'll have to answer all those questions in interviews. The interesting thing we heard is that he was a tyrant up there on the field, and at the end ended up being too nice. But Donahoe really didn't support him, either, and interfered all the time, so it was a tough situation for him as we see it."

Several team executives contacted said they expect Detroit and Oakland to be looking for new coaches as well, although front-office issues and other considerations would likely make them less appealing to Williams, who realizes he can be picky. Minnesota, New Orleans, Buffalo and Baltimore could need a head coach as well, but those opportunities would lack the intangibles St. Louis, Kansas City or Houston would provide.

Williams said that in any potential job, he will follow his father's advice and look at three factors: "Where am I going, what am I doing and who is it with?" And, Williams said, that third question is most important now, looking for strong ownership and management and an organization willing to spend for assistants and other staff. "I'm not willing to budge on that," he said.

Williams has thought about likely sticking with one side of the ball -- defense -- should he become a head coach again, and has kept detailed scouting reports on a myriad of pro and college coaches since 1992 in a personal database, updating it at the Senior Bowl each year in order to have the ability to put together a staff on short notice. But even then, Williams was adamant that he is very capable of turning down a job, and will solicit regular input from Snyder and Gibbs before doing anything.

"Dan Snyder and Joe Gibbs will definitely be a part of this process," Williams said.

Redskins' Contingencies

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If Williams does leave, Greg Blache, the defensive coordinator, would be the most likely successor, and the Redskins could block Williams from taking any other assistants under contract with him should he leave.

Blache is also a disciplinarian who espouses the same hyper-aggressive philosophies as Williams. Neither is averse to getting in a player's face if need be, and, like linebackers coach Dale Lindsey, Blache has run an NFL defense before. Unlike in years past, when upheaval marred Washington's maturity as a franchise under constant firings -- leaving the Redskins with six defensive coordinators between 1999 and 2004 -- there is a blueprint in place, an identity all believe in.

Losing Williams would surely be a blow -- and if he stays he would certainly be next in line when Gibbs retires -- but his departure would be cushioned by the experience of the entire defensive staff.

"Gregg has surrounded himself with credible people in Blache and Dale, and the list goes on," defensive tackle Joe Salave'a said. "And that's their forte, too, physical football, and I think we'll be in good hands whatever the situation may be. For Gregg, that's on him, but I think either way, with the nucleus that Joe Gibbs has reestablished here, he wants to have some sort of normalcy that hadn't been around here for the last couple of years, and I think we'll have that either way."

Staff Writer Howard Bryant contributed to this report.