FOXBORO — Patriots defensive coordinator Terrell Williams is not expected to call defensive plays Sunday against Pittsburgh, but he will be more involved with the team this week, according to head coach Mike Vrabel.
Williams, 51, did not travel or call plays last week against Miami due to a second, unspecified medical issue that has limited his time at the facility. Inside linebackers coach Zak Kuhr replaced him as the Patriots’ lead defensive coach and play-caller, just as he did over the spring when Williams was away from the team for months due to health-related reasons.
“I’d say (Williams)’s feeling better,” Vrabel said at a press conference Wednesday. “I think that we’ll probably be operating under the same premise. I mean, Terrell’s around. I just want to try to get some continuity, and with the situation probably being fluid, we’ll stick to the same plan that we had last week. He’ll just be more involved. I just want to make sure that we’re not in and out and in and out, that’s all.”
Williams, 51, has not revealed what ailed him in the spring. In his absence, the Patriots allowed 27 points to the Dolphins last week after giving up 20 to the Raiders in their season opener, the only game he has called as defensive coordinator. Williams worked for Vrabel in Tennessee from 2018-23, then served as a defensive assistant in Detroit last year when Lions head coach Dan Campbell called him the best defensive line coach in the league.