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SAN FRANCISCO — Milton Williams has come a long way for a player with surprisingly little recruiting interest out of his Texas high school.
Louisiana Tech has enjoyed its share of college football success but it’s far from the SEC or Big 12 stages you might have expected. One of the NFL’s premier defensive tackles was a redshirt in 2017 with a team competing in Conference USA.
Williams is now set for a third Super Bowl appearance in five years, including a second straight. He’ll take the field Sunday at Levi’s Stadium just a few months removed from signing a nine-figure contract in free agency. His story somewhat mirrors the rise of the Patriots in this 2025 season — eight combined wins in the previous two years have been erased by a 12th appearance in a league championship game.
“Took the long road, man,” Williams said at Super Bowl Opening Night on Monday. “Underrated, overlooked — nobody really gave me anything. I had to work and go get everything that I got up until this point.”
New England’s defense enters this Super Bowl LX meeting with the Seattle Seahawks allowing less than 210 total yards per game in the playoffs. The Patriots have forced eight turnovers and surrendered just 26 points in three playoff outings, including a 10-7 smothering of the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship Game. Williams missed five games due to an ankle injury but returned with what has become his typical force late in the regular season.
“I thrive on people telling me I can't do something,” Williams said. “I like all the noise and the negativity around who I am and what I can bring to the table.”
Williams started in seven of 17 games for the Philadelphia Eagles during the 2024 regular season, finishing with a pair of career highs — 10 quarterback hits and five sacks. The Patriots were aggressive when he hit free agency, signing Williams to a four-year, $104 million deal to serve as a focal point of the New England defense. Patriots coach Mike Vrabel was among those personally recruiting Williams to join what has become a renaissance in Foxboro.
“They believed in me more,” Williams said. “They believed in who I am and what I bring to the table. They showed that.
“Talking to coach Vrabel, his plan for me and this organization, knowing what winning looked like — he's been there and done that multiple times. I wanted to be a part of that.”
That contract and his performance have made Williams one of this team’s faces. He blended more into the background with Philadelphia despite a strong effort in a 40-22 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs last February. That second championship for the Eagles was the last appearance for Williams and he seemingly went from contender to rebuilder when he signed with New England.
“I sat and talked to Milton Williams about Super Bowls just finding him — that he was in the Super Bowl again,” former Pats safety Devin McCourty said Tuesday at an NBC Sports press conference. “And he said, ‘Last year, I didn’t do any of this. There was no me coming up here to do interviews and talking to people. I was just a guy on the team.’
“And when you hear that," Mc Courty said, "that creates a different kind of chip on your shoulder.”
That team-wide edge has helped propel the Patriots to this point. They’ll be underdogs again when the ball is kicked off on Sunday afternoon here, and that seems to be the way they like it. Williams said he would offer whatever advice his teammates sought entering what will be their most important game to date together.
“Keep everything simple,” Williams said. “Just do what we've been doing all year. There's going to be a lot of media, talking every day, being in a new spot, trying to practice. But just keep it simple.
“Do what we've been doing all year. Communicate, line up, execute and go get a win.”
[email protected]
On X: @BillKoch25
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Underdog Milton Williams a perfect fit for surprising Patriots team
Continue reading...
Louisiana Tech has enjoyed its share of college football success but it’s far from the SEC or Big 12 stages you might have expected. One of the NFL’s premier defensive tackles was a redshirt in 2017 with a team competing in Conference USA.
Williams is now set for a third Super Bowl appearance in five years, including a second straight. He’ll take the field Sunday at Levi’s Stadium just a few months removed from signing a nine-figure contract in free agency. His story somewhat mirrors the rise of the Patriots in this 2025 season — eight combined wins in the previous two years have been erased by a 12th appearance in a league championship game.
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“Took the long road, man,” Williams said at Super Bowl Opening Night on Monday. “Underrated, overlooked — nobody really gave me anything. I had to work and go get everything that I got up until this point.”
New England’s defense enters this Super Bowl LX meeting with the Seattle Seahawks allowing less than 210 total yards per game in the playoffs. The Patriots have forced eight turnovers and surrendered just 26 points in three playoff outings, including a 10-7 smothering of the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship Game. Williams missed five games due to an ankle injury but returned with what has become his typical force late in the regular season.
“I thrive on people telling me I can't do something,” Williams said. “I like all the noise and the negativity around who I am and what I can bring to the table.”
Williams started in seven of 17 games for the Philadelphia Eagles during the 2024 regular season, finishing with a pair of career highs — 10 quarterback hits and five sacks. The Patriots were aggressive when he hit free agency, signing Williams to a four-year, $104 million deal to serve as a focal point of the New England defense. Patriots coach Mike Vrabel was among those personally recruiting Williams to join what has become a renaissance in Foxboro.
“They believed in me more,” Williams said. “They believed in who I am and what I bring to the table. They showed that.
“Talking to coach Vrabel, his plan for me and this organization, knowing what winning looked like — he's been there and done that multiple times. I wanted to be a part of that.”
That contract and his performance have made Williams one of this team’s faces. He blended more into the background with Philadelphia despite a strong effort in a 40-22 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs last February. That second championship for the Eagles was the last appearance for Williams and he seemingly went from contender to rebuilder when he signed with New England.
“I sat and talked to Milton Williams about Super Bowls just finding him — that he was in the Super Bowl again,” former Pats safety Devin McCourty said Tuesday at an NBC Sports press conference. “And he said, ‘Last year, I didn’t do any of this. There was no me coming up here to do interviews and talking to people. I was just a guy on the team.’
“And when you hear that," Mc Courty said, "that creates a different kind of chip on your shoulder.”
That team-wide edge has helped propel the Patriots to this point. They’ll be underdogs again when the ball is kicked off on Sunday afternoon here, and that seems to be the way they like it. Williams said he would offer whatever advice his teammates sought entering what will be their most important game to date together.
“Keep everything simple,” Williams said. “Just do what we've been doing all year. There's going to be a lot of media, talking every day, being in a new spot, trying to practice. But just keep it simple.
“Do what we've been doing all year. Communicate, line up, execute and go get a win.”
[email protected]
On X: @BillKoch25
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Underdog Milton Williams a perfect fit for surprising Patriots team
Continue reading...
