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Mike Reiss
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The New England Patriots had just finished a frigid and snowy on-field celebration after being crowned AFC champions in Denver when defensive tackle Milton Williams walked toward the tunnel, took a left and approached the team’s locker room.
As one of the Patriots’ best players, Williams had brought the heat to the Denver Broncos on Sunday and sparked another dominating performance by the team’s defense in a 10-7 win. As he walked off the field, his fire was still burning well after being handed conference championship hats and T-shirts.
«No. 1 offensive line, my ass!» Williams yelled out.
Williams, who had grown tired of hearing about the prowess of the Broncos’ O-line in the days leading up to the game, had a team-high four pressures despite facing double-teams on 40% of his pass rushes, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.
The 26-year-old has brought a chip-on-the-shoulder edge to the Patriots in his first season with the team and is instrumental to the NFL’s fourth-ranked scoring defense (18.8 average PPG in the regular season). He has also brought playoff and championship experience, which teammates are leaning into leading up to Super Bowl LX against the Seattle Seahawks on Feb. 8 (6:30 p.m. ET, NBC).
«He’s one of the only ones that has been in this position on our team, so we’ve been able to talk to him about how the games feel and things like that,» cornerback Christian Gonzalez said.
Williams exploded onto the scene last year at this time, sacking Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes twice as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX, including a fourth-quarter strip sack he recovered. The timing couldn’t have been better. A free agent, Williams parlayed the big-game performance into a four-year, $104 million contract in New England — a team record of which $63 million is guaranteed. With that came increased expectations. And in one of the season’s pleasant surprises for the Patriots, Williams has exceeded them.
«I feel like they brought me here for a reason and I try to show them why. I feel like I’ve done that, but I want to show them more,» Williams said.
Now he’s back in the Super Bowl and using his experience on the biggest stage to help prepare his Patriots teammates for the challenge ahead.
«His impact, it’s phenomenal,» cornerback Marcus Jones said. «Just the leadership that he comes with every single day at practice. The preparation, as you can tell. Then every single play, he plays like it’s his last play.»
Arizona Cardinals and Carolina Panthers, according to sources familiar with how Williams’ free agent process unfolded.
The numbers kept going up as teams bid against each other, and the Patriots — envisioning Williams playing a similar line-up-at-all-spots role that versatile and powerful four-time Pro Bowler Jeffery Simmons did when Mike Vrabel served as head coach of the Tennessee Titans — never relented.
«I’m blessed to have coaches and an organization that believed in me, and to believe what I bring to the table,» said Williams, who had mostly been a backup in Philadelphia (five starts in 2024) behind first-round picks Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter.
«I just came in and tried to be me, rally the guys and tell them, ‘It’s about work.’ Showing up every day, making sure we have to do what we have to do. I really didn’t know what to expect. I just came in to feed into this team, feed into the young guys, trying to be a good vet for those guys.»
Reflecting on signing with New England, Williams said bluntly Thursday that a financial raise was obviously a significant factor for him. But also that he wanted to play for Vrabel, in part because he had experienced so much in the NFL as a player and coach.
In all, the Patriots spent $209 million in guaranteed money on free agents in 2025, the most by any team in the NFL last offseason. They can now become the second straight team to win the Super Bowl after spending the most guaranteed money in free agency in the previous offseason. (The 2024 Eagles spent $275 million guaranteed on free agents and won Super Bowl LIX.)
Los Angeles Chargers, Williams proved he was just that, sacking quarterback Justin Herbert on fourth-and-9 with two minutes remaining to end the game. Williams aligned in the «A» gap between center Bradley Bozeman and right guard Mekhi Becton. At the snap, he took a quick step to his right, used a powerful swipe of his right arm to stun Bozeman, then surged into the middle of the pocket as Bozeman attempted to ride him off and left guard Zion Johnson tried to impede his path.
The 6-foot-3, 290-pound Williams wouldn’t be denied, swallowing up Herbert to close out the game in similar fashion to how he did it in the Patriots’ first victory of the season — sacking Tua Tagovailoa on fourth-and-12 late in the fourth quarter to close out a Week 2 win in Miami.
When Williams made it to the Patriots’ sideline and was greeted by Vrabel, he head-butted him and split his lip.
«I was just turnt. That was pure emotion,» Williams said. «I forgot Vrabes didn’t have a helmet on.»
Teammates say they feed off Williams’ game-sealing plays, with Vrabel adding, «He certainly has come up in big moments.»
They note that Williams isn’t a rah-rah type — fellow starting defensive tackle Christian Barmore is usually the one hyping up front-seven defenders before games — but his bluntness and leadership by «always doing the right thing» resonates, according to Gonzalez.
Williams started 12 games in the regular season and totaled 29 tackles, 3.5 sacks and 7 quarterback hits. He missed five games with a high ankle sprain sustained early in a Nov. 14 win over the New York Jets before returning in the regular-season finale, knocking off some rust and regaining his top form in the playoffs.
«I’ve kind of seen [Williams’ leadership] even more during his time out [with injury],» edge rusher K’Lavon Chaisson said. «He tried to find ways to be a part of [things] and help us stay focused and be locked in. He is right back where he left off last year and continues to spread that knowledge to the young ones — how to approach the week, how to approach this game in general with all it brings, the emotion that may come with it. He’s been doing that, plus more.»
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«He’s an elite player,» Gonzalez said. «He can change the game.»
Williams and Gonzalez are arguably the Patriots’ best defensive players, and the team is 12-0 when both have played this season, allowing an average of 14.5 points per game. That would rank New England as the lowest-scoring defense in the NFL this season, ahead of top-ranked Seattle (17.2 average points per game).
In eight games where either Gonzalez or Williams was out, the Patriots went 5-3, allowing 21.5 points per game (which would have tied for 12th in the NFL).
Williams is now determined to change the perception of the Patriots’ defense, which he has consistently said he believes is overlooked. After Sunday’s win over the Broncos, he said: «We have one more game to take care of business and see if we can get some credit then.»
At the same time, Williams acknowledged even he is surprised the Patriots are playing in the Super Bowl.
In his trademark blunt way, when asked if he had any idea the team would advance this far in his first season, he said simply: «Not this fast.»
