Cadillac does not blame others for sophomore slump

By RICK STROUD, Times Staff Writer
Published September 6, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT [Times photo: Brendan Fitterer] Cadillac Williams, who scored only one touchdown last season, is hit by the Jaguars' Pat Thomas during a preseason game.

TAMPA - Cadillac Williams is not a fantasy owner. But he did have a dreamlike sequence of games that nobody will soon forget.

In fact, it was the best three games to start a career of anyone who has ever worn an NFL uniform. That's when Williams set a rookie rushing record with 434 yards.

The Hall of Fame confiscated his gloves and shoes. A group of area car dealers delivered a real Cadillac to his home.

"Those first three games were outstanding," Williams said. "It's something I couldn't have predicted better."

Williams went on to enjoy three more 100-yard games to finish with 1,178 yards and six touchdowns and was named offensive rookie of the year.

Unfortunately for Cadillac, the wheels are completely off his fairy tale.

Instead of the first three games being a precursor to his success, they are now just a curse.

Real fantasy football league owners have dropped Williams like a hot coal after his production in 2006 plummeted to 798 yards and only one touchdown.

There were plenty of reasons for the decline. A rookie quarterback. Defenses that swarmed him like ants at a picnic. Even back spasms.

"But to be a premier back, to go where I want to go, no matter what goes wrong, I have to find a way to dominate somehow, some way," Williams said. "I have to get the job done. I've never been one to make excuses for why something didn't happen. I've got to do something about it, and it's why I'm coming to play every Sunday.

"I started off with such a bang. As a team, we did pretty well. We went to the playoffs. Then that second year comes around, and it was tough. It was one of my first losing seasons ever; something I never experienced, where I wasn't dominating. It was a total shock to me. It kind of made me realize that I was taking the game for granted."

How hard was it for Williams last season? Consider that he has rushed for more than 100 yards in a game just once since Oct. 8. In fact, nine times last season, he failed to rush for 49 yards.

Finally, a foot injury ended Williams' season two games early.

"He needs to be able to go wire to wire for 16 starts," coach Jon Gruden said of Williams, who also missed two games in 2005. "He was the rookie of the year. It wasn't just three games. He did pretty darn good.

"A lot goes into it. You've got to be on the field. You've got to be more involved in the passing game. You've got to be injury-free, and you've got to be a key component to the attack every week. The supporting cast has to help you also."

Williams, 25, was so frustrated, he changed his routine during the offseason. He spent most of July training twice a day in Arizona with former Auburn teammates Ronnie Brown and Carlos Rogers.

If anyone can relate to Williams it's Brown, who shared the backfield with him for the Tigers. Brown's rushing total with the Dolphins dropped from 1,008 yards in his rookie season to 907 in 2006.

For Williams to become a complete back, he knows he has to stay on the field. Last season, he had 30 receptions. He has worked hard at receiving and pass protection.

"When he came out, every day he did the natural," running backs coach Art Valero said. "And occasionally, he did the supernatural. When he touched the ball, you took a gasp because you thought something good would happen.

"Now he wants to be a complete back. And if you're complete, you can be one of those top guys. You can be like a StevenJackson, a Shaun Alexander or a LaDainian Tomlinson."

In the spring, Valero put together a highlight reel of Williams' lowlights. He counted 97 of the best 1- and 2-yard runs he could find.

"Some of the most amazing runs I've ever seen," Valero said with a straight face.

To this day, Williams has refused to watch it.

"At first, I was going to do it," Williams said. "But I said, 'No, Coach, I'm cool.'"

It's probably a good thing because Gruden is expecting longer runs from Williams this season.

"Every once in a while," Gruden said, "I'd like for him to make the kind of run where you just stop the game and go, 'Whoa!' Did he just do that?'"

The Bucs' rebuilt offensive line will help with promising young blockers such as Davin Joseph, Jeremy Trueblood and Arron Sears. Finally, quarterback Jeff Garcia will keep defenses honest.

Cadillac is ready to roll again.

"I'm on fire," Williams said. "I definitely have that fire back in me, and I'm ready to go. I'm not saying that last year I wasn't pumped up.

"But at the same time, I think sometimes you take things for granted and God works in mysterious ways. He humbles you."

[Last modified September 5, 2007, 23:39:00]