Browns K’Waun Williams out for Oakland game with concussion
By Thomas Moore
A day after seeing third-string cornerback Justin Gilbert come up lame in practice with a bad hamstring, the Cleveland Browns’s secondary took another hit Friday when it learned that nickel back K’Waun Williams will miss Sunday’s game against Oakland with a concussion.
Williams had practiced on Wednesday and Thursday, so the news caught the team by surprise.
“We’re not sure (when the concussion occurred),” head coach Mike Pettine said. “He complained of headaches yesterday and we had him evaluated and they went ahead and chose to be cautious and put him in the protocol.”
Related: Justin Gilbert suffers another injury
It is the third concussion that Williams has suffered since signing with the Browns in 2014 as an undrafted free agent out of Pittsburgh. He also suffered concussions during his rookie season against the Pittsburgh Steelers in October and in the season finale against the Baltimore Ravens.
In Williams place the team will turn to second-year corner Pierre Desir.
“It is a great opportunity for me. I am blessed that the coaches have enough faith to put me in there and I am ready to do whatever I can to help our team win,” Desir said. “I have great confidence in myself. This is year two in the system so I feel a lot more comfortable than I did a year before.”
When Desir is in the game the Browns could shift Tramon Williams into the slot position, a move that fellow cornerback Joe Haden said should be no problem for the nine-year veteran.
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“Tramon has been in this league for a while. Coaches believe in him that he can switch into the nickel spot,” Haden said. “Pierre has been working his ass off ever since OTAs. He just does everything the right way and goes hard. I think he is definitely ready to step in on the outside.”
What about Gilbert, who has struggled since being drafted in the first round and has lost playing time to both K’Waun Williams and Desir?
“In certain defenses, he slid inside. He’s primarily an outside corner but he has worked inside,” Pettine said of Gilbert. “He practiced today (and) pushed through it so we’ll get another evaluation tomorrow and see where we are.”
Definitely never a dull moment when it comes to the Browns.