EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsTAMPA, Fla. -- Evan Williams has had interceptions before. Four of them in his first 32 NFL regular-season games before Sunday to be exact. So while the Green Bay Packers safety would like the football he inadvertently discarded after interception No. 5 came early in Sunday's 17-14 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it was the sack -- his first in the NFL -- on the final series that might have been more meaningful.Three times on the final three defensive plays of the game, coordinator Jonathan Gannon called blitzes. Three times, he sent Williams. On the first, Williams came unblocked and sacked rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels. The second forced a quick pass for a short completion. And on the third, Williams got home again and had Daniels in his grasp when the quarterback flung the ball away.Game over.Not only did the Packers (2-2) come away with a much-needed win, but they may also have found a way to make up for the loss of linebacker Edgerrin Cooper, who left the game in the second half with a likely season-ending Achilles injury.Yes, the Packers have leaders such as linebacker Zaire Franklin and safety Xavier McKinney. And eventually they will get star edge rusher Micah Parsons back. But Cooper and Williams were the young stars on this defense, both members of the 2024 draft class, and now one of them is likely out of the picture.Gannon might not rush Williams as much from the safety spot as he did with Cooper as a linebacker, but for Gannon to give Williams that responsibility -- and for Williams to deliver -- could be a sign of what's to come without Cooper."Shoutout to that guy just because he always preaches players not plays in the biggest situations," Williams said of Gannon. "For him to call my number in that type of situation, it means a lot to me. To understand the coach has that type of trust in you in the big situations, when you have to make a play, that you're the number he calls, that means everything. Moving forward, yeah, it means everything."It capped the kind of performance by Williams that the Packers are going to need. Isaiah McDuffie and Ty'Ron Hopper took over for Cooper at linebacker Sunday, but Williams took over as playmaker. He already had that first-quarter interception, which wasn't granted until replay overturned the call of incomplete on the field, but Williams finished with seven tackles, the sack (which was one of two QB hits) and two pass breakups."Hell of a game," McKinney said.Williams' two pressures on the final drive gave him six for the season after recording two in his first two seasons. Part of that is opportunity. But with opportunity comes responsibility."He can be really f---ing good," McKinney said. "I think just the progression that I've seen him make from when he first came here to where he's at now, he's a mature player. He goes out there and he's versatile and can play different things, and I think you're just going to keep see him progressing. My job is to make sure that he keeps going towards where I know that he's capable of being as a player in this league. I love to see it, and it's good to see it, too."It didn't surprise tight end Tucker Kraft, who has gone up against Williams as much as anyone in practice."Evan's shown up in critical moments this season -- deep PBUs, fitting the box," Kraft said. "So having a guy as dynamic as Evan on your team, it really alleviates a lot of issues because he brings that physicality and he's a ballhawk."As much as the Packers will need someone to make up for the loss of Cooper, Williams must be conscious of one thing: Don't try to do too much. And he knows it."As soon as you start to do too much and feel like you've got to make plays or fill in for somebody that's gone, that's when there's holes in the defense and explosives start to show," he said. "So it's just about doing your job and trusting the man next to you, even though that's not going to be Coop. I've got trust in all the guys in this locker room. We put in a lot of time in training camp to get to this point right here. Regardless who it is, we're going to ride with him all the way."Williams said he had a feeling he might be in position to make some plays Sunday, especially the interception, which was his first of the season after he had one taken away by a penalty in Week 1."The ball found me in practice a couple times," he said. "That's always a good sign coming into a game."Speaking of finding the ball, Williams would like the ball from the interception. He discarded it after the side judge initially ruled he caught the ball out of bounds."I tossed the ball back to the ball boy," Williams said. "They didn't even review it. I think a challenge flag came out and then like 15 seconds after, they said it's an interception. After that, I was just focused on my celebration. Went to the end zone and started celebrating. And then about 3 seconds later, I'm thinking, 'What did I do with that ball?'"
