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| Sunday, November 12 Associated Press | |||
| CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- New Orleans says it's not a one-man team.
The Saints will get a chance to prove it during their surprising
playoff run.
Ricky Williams, for whom the Saints traded their entire 1999
draft, broke his left ankle in a 20-10 victory over the Carolina
Panthers on Sunday.
Coach Jim Haslett said his star running back will probably be
lost for 6-8 weeks. If that timetable holds true, Williams will
miss the rest of the regular season.
Williams said it was too early to tell if he would be back for
possible playoff games.
"Who knows how I'm going to heal," Williams said. "I'm not a
doctor."
The injury occurred on what looked like a harmless 2-yard run up
the middle with about six minutes left as the hottest team in the
NFL was cruising to its sixth straight victory.
That run put the former Heisman Trophy winner from Texas right
at 1,000 yards for the season. Williams limped to the sideline and
didn't return.
X-rays showed Williams' ankle was broken in two places, Haslett
said.
"I am not going to skip a beat. If I have to throw the ball 50
times, so be it," quarterback Jeff Blake said. "I don't think
we'll have to worry about that because we have one of the best
offensive lines in the league. I have said this over and over
again, I can run through some of those holes."
One of the best assets of the 236-pound Williams was his ability
to punish teams in the fourth quarter, helping the Saints (7-3)
close out close games by eating up the clock.
That aspect of the team is now gone. Chad Morton, a rookie from
Southern Cal, is the probable fill-in for Williams. Morton is
5-foot-8, 186 pounds.
"We're not going to change anything," Saints offensive
coordinator Mike McCarthy said. "The standard of play Ricky set is
the standard the rest of these guys will be held to."
Some of the Saints were unaware of the seriousness of the injury
until interviewed by reporters. Many just shook their heads in
disbelief as Williams hobbled to the showers on crutches.
"It's devastating to me," Morton said. "I feel sick about it
right now. I can't even enjoy this win. He's our offense."
Williams became the first Saints runner to hit the 1,000-yard
mark since Dalton Hilliard did it in 1989.
"I am still kind of shaking right now knowing that he's hurt,"
Morton said. "Maybe he'll be back for the playoffs. Maybe a
miracle will happen."
Williams, on crutches for the first time since he was 10,
greeted the media with a smile.
"I was talking to coach Haslett and he said you can't control
things like that," Williams said when asked how he could be
smiling. "What's done is done and I have to keep working hard and
hopefully come back for the playoffs."
While Williams remained upbeat about his comeback, the team's
offensive line took the news particularly hard.
"Right now, we're pretty upset about it," said Wally Williams,
no relation to the running back. "We take pride in protecting our
guys, and Ricky is one of our guys. We open holes for him and pick
him off the ground when he's down."
The injury will also hurt the second-year pro in the pocketbook.
Williams signed a seven-year deal worth $68.4 million. But some of
that money is based on incentives, like a $1 million bonus for
rushing for more than 1,600 yards. He was on pace to get 1,608
before his injury. | ALSO SEE
Williams breaks ankle in Saints' win over Panthers | ||