New Orleans Saints cornerback P.J. Williams was suspended for two weeks without pay after violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy, per Rod Walker of Nola.com. Williams will miss games against the Chicago Bears and Arizona Cardinals, putting him on track to return during the Saints’ Week 9 bye. According to league rules, he must stay away from the team until Monday, Oct. 28.
Williams was arrested and booked for driving while under the influence of alcohol earlier this year. He reportedly pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of recklessly operating a motor vehicle and paid a $340 fine back in August, but the NFL still investigated the incident, as is its policy.
The obvious candidate to replace Williams in the lineup is veteran Patrick Robinson, whom he competed with for the starting job throughout training camp. But Robinson has taken a back seat to both Williams and rookie defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who has taken the field lined up in a variety of roles including slot cornerback and two-high free safety. Here’s how their snap counts have broken up through six games:
- Williams: 314 snaps on defense, 37 on special teams units
- Gardner-Johnson: 67 snaps on defense, 100 on special teams
- Robinson: 9 defensive snaps, 72 on special teams
New Orleans could see this as an opportunity to test a prospect they value for the future against two vulnerable quarterbacks: Bears backup Chase Daniel and Cardinals rookie Kyler Murray, neither of whom is working with a top-shelf receiving corps. But it’s just as possible that the Saints err on the side of caution and lean on the veteran they signed last year to start in this exact role.
