Ravens' Marcus Williams Addresses Being Benched

It's been a rough season for one of the Baltimore Ravens' top defensive backs.

Cincinnati Bengals halfback Chase Brown (30) is stopped by Baltimore Ravens safety Marcus Williams (32) in the NFL Week 5 the Sunday October 6, 2024 at Payor Stadium. / Cara Owsley/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It's no secret that the Baltimore Ravens' secondary has had an extremely rough season to this point, and one player has taken more heat for it than any other.

That would be safety Marcus Williams, who was considered one of the better players at his position before the season. This year, though, Williams ranks 125th among 147 safeties with a 48.9 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, as well as a 46.8 grade in coverage. Most alarming, he has yet to record a single interception despite his ball-hawking ability being his biggest strength.

Baltimore's coaching staff publicly backed Williams before, but in last week's loss to the Cleveland Browns, he didn't play a single snap despite being active. Instead, Eddie Jackson and Ar'Darius Washington saw their most action of the season so far.

When asked about the situation during his first media appearance since the game, Williams opted to look to the future instead.

"We're not worried about what happened last week," Williams said. "It's all about moving forward this week, getting prepared [and] staying prepared. When I'm ready to get in, and it's my time, I'll go do what I have to do and make plays.

"I've faced adversity all my life; it's nothing new to me. Adversity makes you or breaks you, and it's [about] how you react and how you come out, act like a pro and do all you have to do to move on and get to the next week."

At least from the outside, it seems like Williams responded well to the benching. Defensive coordinator Zach Orr, who's also taken a lot of heat for his unit's performance, spoke highly of the safety after Thursday's practice.

"We had those conversations, and one thing I'll say about Marcus – the way he handled what went down is great," Orr said. "He's just a great teammate. He's been a pro since he's been here. He handled last week like a pro, so I'm excited to see how we move and how he moves going forward. Like I said, like I got up here and said last week, I've got all the confidence in Marcus WIlliams. Like I said, he had a great day at practice today [and] a great day at practice yesterday, and I think that the best is to come for him."

Williams' road to redemption starts when the Ravens host the Denver Broncos on Sunday, and while he's not sure what his exact role will be, he'll be ready for whatever comes his way.

"I'm just going to stay prepared no matter what," Williams said. "I'd rather be prepared for an opportunity and not have one than have an opportunity and not be prepared, so I'm going to stay prepared. When my name is called, I'm going to go out there and do what I have to do."

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