NFL Expected to Hand Down Punishment on Cowboys Troubled Linebacker
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Sam Williams of the Dallas Cowboys.
One week after scoring 44 points while allowing just 22 against the Washington Commanders, the Dallas Cowboys saw any momentum they may have gained from that inspiring win evaporate on Sunday when they walked away with almost the exact opposite result.
The Cowboys fell to the Denver Broncos, allowing 44 points this time while scoring just 24.
“The blame starts at the top in the front office and trickles down to the coaching staff,” wrote commentator Maitland Rutledge of the Cowboys site
Cowboys Player No Stranger to NFL Discipline
One of the three players who should be held most accountable, according to Rutledge, may also be expecting to face accountability not only from the Cowboys’ coaches and, of course, fans — but from the league itself.
That player is fourth-year edge rusher Sam Williams, who is no stranger to discipline handed down by the NFL.
“Williams also once again could not control himself after plays. He was seen mouthing off at opposing players after plays, and it came to a boiling point in the second quarter,” Rutledge recounted. “After the Broncos scored another touchdown to go up 20-10, Williams was called for an unnecessary roughness penalty. Due to the ball being moved closer to the goal line, Denver went for two.”
The penalty came after a one-yard touchdown carry by Broncos running back RJ Harvey with 3:47 remaining in the second quarter.
After the scoring play, Williams somehow got into a brief altercation with Denver offensive tackle Garrett Bolles and in the course of the skirmish, the 2022 second-round draft pick out of Ole Miss took a swing at the face mask of the Broncos lineman.
Penalty May be Seen as Repeat Offense
Williams was quickly flagged for an unnecessary roughness penalty, which was applied on the extra point — which brought the Broncos close enough to the end zone to attempt a two-point conversion.
The two-point try failed, but Williams now appears likely to face a fine. The question remains, however, of whether league officials will consider the penalty a face mask call.
If so, it would count as a second offense because on October 4, Williams was slapped with an $11,002 fine for a face mask on what would have been his first sack of the season when he took down Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love in Week Four.
If the NFL hits Williams with another face mask fine, as a second offense the punishment would set him back, according to the table of fines posted by the NFL Operations Office, another $17,389 against his salary this year of $1.6 million.
Last season, despite the fact that he spent the entire year on injured reserve, Williams was suspended three games for violations of the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Though he obviously was not going to play those three games anyway, Williams still saw his salary docked for those games — costing him $211,807, according to
The unnecessary roughness penalty against the Broncos was Williams’ fourth flag of the season, and 16th of the three seasons he has played.
In 2023, his last full season, Williams was called for eight penalties including another face mask call, a roughing the kicker penalty, another for running into the kicker and one for interfering with a fair catch.
Packers Finally Bench Struggling Veteran in Week 8 Win
(Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
Javon Bullard #20 of the Green Bay Packers celebrates with Carrington Valentine #24 after recovering a fumble by Kenneth Gainwell #14 of the Pittsburgh Steelers during the fourth quarter in the game at Acrisure Stadium on October 26, 2025 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
The Packers did not exactly shut down Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers in their Sunday night road victory in Week 8, but they certainly made things more difficult on him as the game wore on. Rodgers was 24-for-36 passing, with two touchdowns, but was limited on making the big throws, as Rodgers threw for only 218 yards–an average of 6.1 yards per attempt.
It was Rodgers’ worst game since a Week 3 win over the Patriots. And it came with the Packers making a notable change on the defensive back side, with veteran free-agent signee Nate Hobbs finally benched in favor of Carrington Valentine.
It was a move Packers fans had been calling for in the early weeks of the season, as Hobbs–signed from the Raiders this offseason–has struggled to establish himself in Green Bay. Hobbs had offseason knee surgery and missed Week 1, but has struggled since his return, allowing opposing quarterbacks a 121.4 completion rate when he is targeted this season. That number was 87.2 last year with the Raiders for Hobbs.
Packers Played Carrington Valentine Nearly All Defensive Snaps
Valentine, meanwhile, was solid in his performance against Rodgers. He had seen his playing time dwindle over the course of the season, until he was limited to just two snaps in Week 7, before he was given 62 snaps on Sunday, to just four for Hobbs.
Valentine did give up a touchdown to receiver Roman Wilson with 2:16 to go and the game all but decided, but even on that play, Valentine closed quickly on Wilson and knocked the ball out of his hands–only after replay was it determined that Wilson had made the catch.
There’s still plenty of time in the season, but it certainly looked as though the Packers were planning to continue with Valentine as the primary corner opposite Keisean Nixon, keeping Hobbs on the bench.
Carrington Valentine ‘Got an Opportunity’
Coach Matt LaFleur explained the thinking in moving Valentine to a bigger role:
“CV got an opportunity and he went out there and I thought he played really competitively the entire game, and I know even on the touchdown catch, I just loved how he competed for the football. I thought that was big-time, and it didn’t go our way in that, in that moment.
“But I thought all in all, he showed physicality. He was challenging guys. There was just no gimmes. And I thought that was big-time because that’s how we want to play. We may be in a three-deep zone defense but you still got to be sticky in some regards in your coverage. You can’t be just giving up freebies all the way down the field.”
Packers CB Competition Still Ongoing
That sounds like LaFleur indicating that Hobbs was, in fact, giving up freebies too often for the team’s liking. And in fairness to Hobbs, he might just not be fully healthy at this point. Besides which, Nixon also had some struggles in Week 8, so it is possible that Hobbs could get back on the field by outplaying Nixon.
“I think when we look at a lot of these situations, you know, we always talk about how it’s going to be a competitive situation, and it was just that,” LaFleur said. “A lot of it comes down to not only—I mean obviously, everybody sees how you perform in a game—but what nobody sees is what we’re doing on a daily basis in practice. …
“At the same time, it’s going to continue to be a competitive situation because we still have a ton of confidence in Hobbs. All of those guys, Keisean, they’re all gonna be competing for playing time.”
