Philadelphia Eagles: Should facing Gregg Williams be a concern?

Should the Philadelphia Eagles be concerned that they’ll take the field on Sunday knowing Gregg Williams is on the other sideline?

Does anybody remember ‘Bounty Gate’? Yes, this is that same Gregg Williams. It’s been over seven years since it was learned the then-defensive coordinator of the New Orleans Saints became one of the lightning rods for a few unethical practices, but unfortunately, every now and then, his checkered past becomes a topic of discussion. Should the Philadelphia Eagles be concerned about facing him on Sunday?

In a city where Buddy Ryan is a folk hero and one of the most famous games ever played is affectionately referred to as ‘The Body Bag Game’, it’s the Eagles who have to be concerned about whether or not their players should worry about the possibility of any cheap shots. It’s the Eagles who have to concern themselves about bounties.

Fast forward from the days of Ryan and the old Veterans Stadium, and though Williams vowed to never take place in another ‘pay for performance’ scandal again, recently he’s been in a firestorm about whether or not Williams, as the Cleveland Browns defensive coordinator, instructed players to hurt Odell Beckham Jr., who was with the New York Giants at the time.

That’s not all. There was also a recent accusation from David Njoku that the New York Jets, Williams’ current employer, and the Eagles opponent on Sunday, were instructed by Williams to take a ‘cheap shot’ on him and that he’s ‘lucky to be alive’.

In all fairness, the audio that surfaced of Williams many moons ago (he instructed his defense to cut the head off of the body, the head being one Brett Favre) is the type of speech that can be heard in every locker room. There’s another side of that, however.

Coaches often don’t reward players financially for getting the job done.

Injuries are a part of the game. We all know that, but there’s a difference between freak occurrences that happen during the course of a game and knowingly and willingly planning an assault on someone. Everyone should expect a physical game. These are two physical teams, but if anything occurs that may be seen as excessive, you can trust and believe a few eyebrows will be raised. Let’s hope that isn’t the case on Sunday.