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Below is a recap of what Detroit Lions tight ends coach Bobby Johnson had to say about the team's pick of tight end Michael Williams on Saturday. (Quotes provided by the Lions.)
On what he liked about TE Michael Williams "First, we have to set the record straight on a player drafted by the Lions named Mike Williams. So he is Michael Williams. If you refer to him as Mike, it has to be preceded by Big Mike. What I really like about Michael Williams, or Big Mike, is he has an extremely high football IQ. You're talking about a kid that started four years at Alabama and they could not replace him. And if you talk to the coaches at Alabama they say the guy that's going to be the hardest to replace in their offense is Michael Williams. That's saying a lot. They've had a lot of guys drafted and here's a guy that played a very versatile role for them, outstanding blocker, he did a lot of off- the- ball stuff, stuff from the backfield that you don't see guys that are 6'7" 270 doing. But he's a remarkable kid, I like the kid, I like the football player. He came in here on his visit and blew my doors off with his football IQ. It just kind of followed up what I already thought about him from the Senior Bowl. Hard worker, the kid came every day to practice like a professional, wanted to get better, asked great questions. I'm just really excited about the kid."
On if he fits the H-back role: "He can. That's the beauty about him is he's an exceptional run blocker, he's a big body, he can still develop into being an even better blocker. But right now he's such a massive person, he can cover you up at worst, he can get movement. But the thing he does bring to the table is his high football IQ that allows him to play some of that H-back role. He has some deficiencies in the receiving department, but it's not like he can't catch, he's just not going to be that down the field, vertical threat. But he's great at the intermediate underneath stuff. He can do all the movement blocking we ask H-backs to do. He can even do the protection from the backfield which if a guy can do that and he has that size he is just going to be one of those guys that 10 years from now, you'll be saying, ‘man he's still playing' because he just keeps finding a way to be productive. You can't find enough players like that. Those guys help your team in so many ways that you can't really put a price tag on that. And to get him at this point that we did, I can't be happier."
On if there were other tight ends higher on the board he would have liked: "I felt really good about Michael from the beginning. I put a lot of value on when we get a chance to work with the guy. There's a lot of guys that you look at in the Draft that you watch film on, you interview them, you talk to them, you give them a grade. But you have never worked with them. You maybe went to their workout and you put them through a couple of drills. I put a real high value on guys that I can get my hands on for a week like we did at the Senior Bowl. I think that's a great opportunity for us as coaches to work with those guys. There were some guys that probably had grades that up there, maybe higher than Mike or the right around Mike, but all along I kept going back to the fact that I worked with him for a week so I was comfortable with him. Maybe even more comfortable with him than guys that had higher grades. This is the Draft and there are 31 other teams picking, so there could be a guy you love. If he's going to go, you have to have a plan. You got to be ready to adjust that plan. Like I said there's some guys that got picked I would loved to have had, but I couldn't be happier than I am now with Michael."
On if this is the old tight end style instead of the new era tight end: "I would say he's cut from that cloth a little bit more than some of these guys. Some of these guys are glorified receivers who are just sneaking on to the roster as a tight end. This guy's a tight end. I go back to the fact that he's very versatile. Don't be deceived by the fact that you look at his height and weight on paper and then go, ‘Oh, he's strictly this.' This kid has got some versatility and I think it all comes from his football IQ. This kid's been playing at arguably the best football program in college football that we've seen in a long time. And he started for four years. So this kid can do a lot and like I said his football IQ is going to increase in terms of versatility for us and I'm excited for him."
On the mix that he has with TEs Brandon (Pettigrew) and Tony (Scheffler): "I think this just makes the room that much better. I felt really good about the room before the draft. I think adding a guy like big Michael is going to add that room even better. He gives us flexibility, I think he gives us some insurance in case something happens to one of the other two guys. I would feel comfortable with everything working out. I feel like we have an insurance policy here. But I still think there's a high side. Mike still has developing to do too. I think Mike's only going to get better. So I felt great about the room, I feel even better. It's kind of like when you have your cake. I've got the icing on it now. So I feel good about it. I think he's going to benefit from it too, by learning from guys like Brandon and Tony."
More from POD:
• Track the Lions' picks in our draft StoryStream
• Grade the Lions' 2013 draft class