It’s no secret that Mario Williams was a bit of a stinker last year with the Buffalo Bills — both in attitude and production. This year, playing for the Miami Dolphins, the defensive end promises to be different.
Via the team’s official website, Williams conveyed his excitement at having this new start with the Dolphins. He said “everybody is fired up” for the upcoming season under new head coach Adam Gase and made a vow to bring his A-game every day when it comes to his mental approach.
“The No. 1 thing that you can definitely look forward to (from me) is attitude,” Williams said. “I think any year, no matter what happens previous, you can’t look at the future or anything like that, but you can handle right now. And my biggest thing, every day I wake up is going to be the best attitude I’ve ever had. And with attitude, everything is going to follow. I know for sure I’m going to be out there humming 100 miles per hour and it’s going to be full attitude.”
Because Williams makes bucketloads of cash playing a game for a living, many fans and also those in the media have hammered him for his final year in Buffalo with the Bills. But who among us hasn’t sulked at our jobs at one point or another when things were going against us?
Williams didn’t shy away from voicing his displeasure at playing out of position in Rex Ryan’s 3-4 scheme last year and appeared to give less than 100 percent on the field. His numbers seem to prove this point. He had one of his worst seasons as a pro since coming out of North Carolina State. After tallying 38 sacks in his previous three years for the Bills, he managed just five.
Back in his comfort zone with the Dolphins this year as a pure 4-3 defensive end, Williams will likely show up more on the stat sheet. If he and the other veterans on the line like Ndamukong Suh and Cameron Wake can all stay healthy and play up to their potential, Miami’s defensive front should be among the league’s best.