By STEPHEN F. HOLDER and RICK STROUD
Published November 25, 2005
TAMPA - Cadillac Williams has already reached one milestone, and he is closing on a couple more.
After his fourth 100-yard performance this season, Williams is one game shy of tying the franchise mark for 100-yard rushing games. Also, Williams continues to make progress toward reaching 1,000 yards. This comes after Williams made history in his third game by breaking Alan Ameche's 50-year-old rookie mark for rushing yards in the first three games of a season with 434.
"I wouldn't mind making history," Williams said. "There's nothing wrong with that."
Warrick Dunn, James Wilder and Ricky Bell each had five 100-yard rushing games, sharing the franchise record.
As for the 1,000-yard threshold, Williams is 368 yards short with six games remaining. He would need to average 61.3 yards, provided he does not miss any more games. Williams missed two games and part of another with a foot injury. Reaching 1,000 isn't consuming him, but Williams knows that should he get there, his team will benefit, too.
"But it would be special," he said. "Any time you can rush for 1,000 yards in this league it's special. For me to sit here and say it wouldn't be special would be crazy."
Williams' friend and confidant, receiver Michael Clayton, feels good about Williams' chances.
"I have no doubt that he's going to do it," Clayton said. "Everybody's rooting for him. I don't think he's really sitting around thinking about it. He's a guy who keeps his composure. Even during his slump, I told him, even if the holes weren't there, I could see he was running hard. And he was."
INJURY UPDATE: Tackle Anthony Davis (ankle sprain) returned to practice on a limited basis Thursday. Tight end Anthony Becht (knee) was limited to individual drills. Safety Dexter Jackson (hamstring) also practiced. All three are listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Bears.
EARLY DISMISSAL: The Bucs moved their meeting and practice schedule up so players could be home with their families for Thanksgiving. The team finished workouts at 1:30 p.m.
"The quarterbacks met and everybody was in here at 7 a.m.," coach Jon Gruden said. "The treatment was at 6 a.m. Nobody was late. ...
"We all tried to work our appetites into a frenzy. We've got a lot to be thankful for. Whether you won a game or not, you have a lot to be thankful for and hopefully everybody reflects on that today."
