DeAngelo Williams: “Ultimately every NFL game, wins and losses come down to the turnover battle.”
November 4, 2009 – 9:00 am by Zach Krantz
The two headed monster that the Carolina Panthers have at running back has slowly come back to fruition. Williams and Jon Stewart has crept back to looking like the 2008 version of the best running back tandem in the NFL. They have run the ball 138 times for 700 yards and seven touchdowns in the last four games. The reason the Panthers were 12-4 last season and made it to the playoffs (before getting beat by Arizona in the divisional round) was because of their tandem of Williams and Stewart. Last season DeAngelo ran for 1,515 yards and 18 touchdowns and Stewart for 836 yards and 10 touchdowns. Their productivity was the catalyst for Carolina, and the Panthers would be well served asking them to shoulder even more of the load for the remainder of this season.
The Panthers have struggled for the better part of the first half of 2009. Jake Delhoumme has been mostly terrible. He’s had moments where he looked like the quarterback that has led Carolina to multiple playoff appearances, but his better days clearly seem to be behind him. He has thrown for five touchdowns and 13 picks with a 59.3 QB rating, not good. They started 0-3 on the year and have improved to 3-4 with a big game against the undefeated Saints this Sunday. The big reason for the semi-turnaround in Carolina is that the running game looks strong again and Jake doesn’t have to throw the ball to win the games for this team anymore. DeAngelo Williams joined Primetime with the Packman on WFNZ in Charlotte to talk about getting the running game back into a groove, the team’s outlook for the rest of the season and playing against the undefeated New Orleans Saints this weekend.
Asked about the way the Falcons ran all over the Saints defense last week and what that can mean for the Panthers:
“Well not so much as that, I saw how much pressure that Saints offense put on the opposing offense to score points. So you know it’s going to come down to us making more plays then they make and us winning the turnover battle.”
Asked about being on the winning side of the turnover battle instead of losing that like they did plenty this season so far:
“It does make life a lot easier, especially for an offensive team that has been in some form of struggling, we kind of got it back a little bit. We kind of stayed away from the turnover aspect of the game. We just protected the football all the way around, offensively, defensively and special teams. Ultimately every NFL game, wins and losses come down to the turnover battle.”
Asked about how good Drew Brees is playing and how good he is as a football player:
“He is playing great football. Somebody asked me last night, what was the difference in the Saints this year and last year? Nothing is really different; they are making their plays this year. If you make more plays then the other team, nine times out of ten, those are going to put up points and you’re going to win football games. They are making every play possible, whether it’s Colston going up and making a 12 foot grab, snatching the ball out of the air or Shockey making one-handed catches downfield to keep the chains moving. They are making the plays when it’s time for them to make their plays and other teams are not and that’s how they are winning football games.”
Listen to DeAngelo Williams on Primetime with the Packman on WFNZ in Charlotte
Tags: Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, DeAngelo Williams, Jake Delhoumme, Jonathon Stewart, New Orleans Saints, NFC, NFC South
