clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Cadillac Williams Joins St. Louis Backfield

From our Buccaneers affiliate, Bucs Nation:

"It is official now: Cadillac Williams is signing with the St. Louis Rams. Williams will share a backfield with Steven Jackson and Jerious Norwood in St. Louis. The fifth overall pick in the 2005 draft has been solid when on the field, but injuries have marred his career. After rushing for 1,178 yards as a rookie, winning the Offensive Rookie of the Year award and setting a rookie record by rushing for 434 yards in his first three games, Cadillac never approached that form again. 

Four games into his sophomore season, Cadillac Williams suffered a torn patellar tendon in his right knee that had people wondering whether he could ever return. Surprisingly, Cadillac did return - only to suffer a torn patellar tendon in his other knee in the 2008 season finale. Despite that, he returned for the start of the 2009 season and managed to wrest the starting job from Derrick Ward's grasp. Cadillac was the main running back for the Bucs in the dismal 2009 season, but looked pretty competent that year. Unfortunately, he appears to have lost much of his skill and did not look like a competent runner anymore in 2010. 

That is why losing Cadillac Williams will hurt the Bucs passing game, but shouldn't really affect the ground game. As a starter in 2010, Cadillac rushed for a paltry 2.96 yards per carry. While he improved on that number when he moved to a third-down role, it's clear that Cadillac can no longer carry a ground game. But as a pass-blocker and pass-catcher, Cadillac was invaluable to the Bucs. In fact, he caught the winning touchdown against the St. Louis Rams in the waning seconds of that game last season. It's ironic that the exact team he beat last year is the new he is now playing for, and it's a shame the Bucs will not see him on the field next year. 

We will miss you, Cadillac. Have a good career."

Bucs Nation writer, Sander

Photographs by cstreet.us, thelastminute, turtlemom nancy , fesek, kthypryn, justinwright, sue_elias, pointnshoot, and scrapstothefuture used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.