The “bigger half” of the famed “Williams Wall” officially retired a Minnesota Vikings today after signing a one-day contract, in a great PR move by GM Rick Speilman.

Pat Williams was a 15-year veteran but hasn’t played  since 2010.  Williams was an amazing run stopper next to current Vikings DT Kevin Williams, earning three trips to the Pro Bowl.

With two days before the 2013 NFL Draft this is another reminder that the Vikings have yet to find a replacement for the 40-year old mammoth nose tackle.

Top Draft Day options to replace Williams would be Alabama’s Jesse Williams and Georgia’s John Jenkins who are late first round to early second-round options.  In the third round a small school prospect like Missouri Southern’s Brandon Williams could be a viable option.

The Vikings currently have both returning NT’s, Letroy Guion and Fred Evans, on the roster again.  Evans is heading into a contract year with the Vikings.

September 11, 2011; San Diego, CA, USA; Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Letroy Guion (98) reacts after being called offsides late in the fourth quarter against the San Diego Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium. The Chargers won 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-US PRESSWIRE

Just ask the Bengals how perilous the preseason can be. Within the first five minutes of their opener Friday night Cincinnati lost 3 starters: Travelle Wharton, Taylor Mays and Carlos Dunlap. The latter two will likely be fine but LG Wharton could miss the entire season with a knee. And you think preseason is meaningless?

On the contrary, preseason can be painfully meaningful. Just ask the Packers’ Desmond Bishop. He’s looking at a possible trip to season-ending IR after injuring his knee. Just ask Michael Vick who banged his hand against a teammate’s helmet and couldn’t feel the hand for a half-hour. Ask Mohamed Massaqoui who left the Browns’ game with a concussion, really bad news in his case as he has a history of head injuries.

Like I said, preseason can be fraught with peril. The Vikings thankfully got out of their Friday night opener relatively unscathed. The only ding worth mentioning was the one to starting nose tackle Letroy Guion. He’ll likely miss 1-2 weeks with a PCL injury – not a big deal compared to what is facing Wharton and Bishop. Considering what we saw from the Vikings’ other interior linemen last night, it’s good news Guion isn’t badly hurt. I don’t think there’s a lot there to choose from beyond Fred Evans.

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Jun 19, 2012; Eden Prairie, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Kevin Williams (93) gets ready to run a drill at Vikings minicamp at Winter Park. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-US PRESSWIR

A couple highlights of Jeremy Fowler’s piece on Kevin Williams from the Pioneer-Press. First off, Kevin’s talk of wanting a contract extension from the Vikings. Williams, who has three years left on his current deal but will have a prohibitively large cap number after this season, opening up the possibility that he will be cut, says he approached the team about a new deal this offseason but received very little in the way of a response. “They might not feel the same way [about keeping me],”  Williams said.  ”We have a lot of things to take care of between now and then. My main thing is to have a good year and whatever happens after that happens after that.”

Williams sounds determined to play well in 2012 and prove to the Vikings that he’s worth keeping around. For him to improve on an inconsistent 2011, that admittedly got started on totally the wrong foot because of that suspension, he will need to stay healthy. He will also need more help from whoever lines up next to him at nose tackle. Last year was a struggle for the Vikes at the nose, and the result was lots of double teams for the 3-tech K-Will. A big part of that struggle was the failed Remi Ayodele experiment. About his ex-teammate Ayodele, Williams would only say, “That didn’t go so well.”

Understatement.

Ayodele’s likely replacement Letroy Guion is himself not exactly Pat Williams, but he does have talent and the coaches seem to be behind him. For Guion to improve and take some pressure off Williams he’ll need to learn to harness his physical skills and play with more discipline. And that goes for the whole Vikings defense according to Williams.

“Sometimes young guys, they take for granted they can just play balls to the wall and it will be OK,” the 9-year veteran Williams explained. “In the NFL, a split second here or there is a difference between a 2-yard run and an 80-yard run. If you think you can beat a play backdoor and get stuck, then you’re selling the other 10 guys out. Or someone else is trying to make up for you and then you’re responsible for them. You’re leaving a gap somewhere.”

K-Will and his fellow veterans, not to mention new defensive coordinator Alan Williams, have a tough task ahead of them teaching this young, rebuilding Vikings defense to play under control.

And what of Williams’ prospects for receiving a new contract in light of the Vikings’ obvious youth movement? Given the Vikes’ lukewarm response to Williams’ overtures, I have to believe a new deal is not in the cards. I also don’t see the Vikes keeping him around on his current deal which will pay him $7 million per after this season. As has been the case with so many veteran players the last couple years, especially this offseason when the Vikings allowed a whole bunch of aging guys to walk, Williams seems destined to hit free agency. If he produces up to his capabilities in 2012, I expect there will be a fairly brisk market for his services come the end of the year.

Bottom line, I wouldn’t be surprised if 2012 ends up being Williams’ last season in purple. Given the way things have gone this offseason I wouldn’t even be entirely shocked if they cut him in camp. Rick Spielman is determined to start over with youth and right now only a handful of older guys seem entirely safe.

(Note: Williams was originally reported to have a two-year option at the end of this season. This information is apparently bad.)

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