Roy Williams Fantasy News

Saturday, November 26, 2011, 9:48pm

Wide receiver Devin Hester didn’t play a single down on offense last week but did handle his share of returns on special teams for the Chicago Bears.

There is a chance Hester will be held out of the offensive package or limited again Sunday when the team plays at Oakland. He’s dealing with a painful shin injury and has also been hobbled recently by a sprained ankle. He’s got a couple of minor injuries going on and the Bears want to get him healthy soon but don’t want to miss his explosiveness in the return game.

"It's something that I've got to kind of deal with until I get better," Hester said. "It's just real sore. Other than that, it's kind of like a nagging injury."

He doesn’t believe he will be sidelined against the Raiders. Two weeks ago, Hester did not practice because of an ankle sprain and then played against the Detroit Lions and had an 82-yard punt return for a touchdown. He was held out of practices Thursday and Friday.

For the Bears, the trio of Johnny Knox, Earl Bennett and Roy Williams played well last week. So there isn’t a need to rush Hester back on offense where he hasn’t put up big numbers.

Friday, November 4, 2011, 10:07am

The buzz surrounding Earl Bennett's return to the Bears' lineup has taken the spotlight away from the guy who quietly developed into one of Jay Cutler's favorite targets.

Undrafted rookie receiver Dane Sanzenbacher leads the team with three touchdown receptions, one more than the other five receivers have combined. But Sanzenbacher understands his role won't remain the same with Bennett back from a Week 2 upper body injury.

Don't expect Sanzenbacher to get squeezed out completely. Offensive coordinator Mike Martz made that clear Thursday as the Bears prepare for a talented Eagles secondary, led by slot-stopper Nnamdi Asomugha.

"(Sanzenbacher) does the same stuff Earl does so now he can help out at the 'X' receiver, too,'' Martz said, referring to the position Johnny Knox and Roy Williams play.

"(Sanzenbacher) actually plays four positions for us. He'll be all over the place. And he's going to start for us in our four-wide receiver sets.''

Marion Barber OUT, Roy Williams IN for Bears
Sunday, September 25, 2011, 3:14pm

Bears Inactives
Marion Barber RB
Earl Bennett WR
Gabe Carimi T
Chris Harris SS
Stephen Paea DT
Corey Wootton DE
Major Wright FS

Friday, September 16, 2011, 10:17am

Bears WR Roy Williams (groin) sat out for the second consecutive day, and is likely to be a game-time decision.

Friday, September 9, 2011, 1:34pm

The Roy Williams-Johnny Knox saga seems like an ‘‘either-or’’ proposition. But that’s not how the Bears see it.

Even if Williams solidifies his role as the No. 1 split end when the regular season commences Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons at Soldier Field, ‘‘we still play Johnny,’’ Bears wide receivers coach Darryl Drake said. ‘‘Johnny’s earned the right to it. He’s still going to go in there.

‘‘There are going to be times Roy needs to come out. We’ve got that luxury. We can play them all. It shouldn’t be a situation where a guy has to go 10 plays in a row. We don’t want to do that. We’ve done that in the past because we had to. We don’t have to anymore.’’

While the Wiliams-Knox situation has been debated outside of Halas Hall, Drake says having both of them on the team is a blessing.

‘‘The best thing for Roy right now is Johnny. The best thing for Johnny is Roy — because they push each other,’’ Drake said. ‘‘Roy has made Johnny better. Johnny has made Roy see that there’s no free lunch. So they’ve made each other better. And hopefully that’ll continue.’’

Tuesday, September 6, 2011, 6:37pm

On the Bears updated roster, Roy Williams remains listed ahead of Johnny Knox opposite Devin Hester.

Friday, August 26, 2011, 11:00am

A month into his second season with the Dallas Cowboys, WR Dez Bryant has become more than a well-intentioned kid who keeps getting into trouble. He's becoming more of a professional.

He understands what's required from him and what the consequences are if he doesn't live up to those requirements. He's showing up on time for meetings and practices. He knows his playbook and runs crisp routes.

Management had enough faith to clear a starting job for him by releasing Roy Williams. They also took the calculated risk of bringing in WR coach Jimmy Robinson as Bryant's new mentor. The risk was that Bryant had become close with his position coach, Ray Sherman. The calculation was that coach Jason Garrett was sure Robinson was up to the challenge.

It helps that Robinson has an impressive list of receivers who have thrived under his tutelage: Marvin Harrison, Andre Rison, Amani Toomer, Ike Hilliard, Joe Horn and the guys from Green Bay who won the Super Bowl last year, with Robinson as part of that staff.

Indeed, Robinson and Bryant have hit it off well. It's evident in the way Bryant tries to absorb every piece of advice Robinson shares with him on the practice field.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011, 6:29pm

Asked where Roy Williams is at, in preparation for the season opener, Bears receivers coach Darryl Drake said, “Not where he needs to be, and he knows that.

“He and I have talked about that. And the good thing about it is, you got Johnny Knox who is fighting and working hard. And believe you and me, [Williams] also understands that Johnny is there, and Johnny is hungry, and Johnny wants his spot back. And if things don’t start changing, then Johnny is going to be in there. Heard it straight from the horse’s mouth.”

Williams said earlier Wednesday that he was being sarcastic about his comments from last week regarding his physical fitness. But Drake didn’t debunk the notion that Williams still isn’t in game shape.

“I understand that Roy’s got some things to do, as far as getting in shape, but that’s not my fault, and that’s not my concern,” Drake said. “My concern is making sure, when we play Atlanta, we got the best guys out there, that is going to give us the best chance to win. And if Johnny Knox is that guy, then he needs to be out there.”

These are strong words from Drake. But keep in mind that Drake coached Williams at Texas, and he knows how to push the receiver.