Does William Hayes believe dinosaurs existed? ‘Not even a little bit.’

Rams defensive end William Hayes doesn’t believe in dinosaurs, but he does believe in mermaids.

Remember when Jahlil Okafor said he believed in mermaids? That was weird. But what’s even weirder is Rams defensive end William Hayes saying that he not only believes in mermaids, but has a hard time believing dinosaurs really existed.

“No, I don't believe dinosaurs existed,” Hayes told ESPN.com. “Not even a little bit. With these bones, it's crazy because man has never seen a dinosaur, we can agree on that, right?”

We can agree on that, William. But what’s the source of his skepticism?

“He thinks archaeologists place bones underground like a parent would place Easter eggs,” teammate and dinosaur enthusiast Chris Long told ESPN.com.

• A train horn went off in Nick Saban’s press conference​

It’s possible Hayes’s strong opinion “started out as a joke and grew into a conviction,” ESPN’s Nick Wagoner writes, but he says it with a straight face. 

Hayes went to T. Wingate Andrews High School and Winston-Salem State University, though perhaps he could have paid more attention in science class.

- Dan Gartland